Read any good fairy tales lately? If not, I suggest you try “Can Do Leadership”, a hagiography of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY). Written by Dino Patti Djalal, his faithful retainer and scribe, the book recounts “inspiring stories” about our President during his first term in office (2004-2009). It’s jam-packed with Dino’s idolatrous thoughts about his “superior, friend and mentor”!
Chapter 1, for example, is titled “In a Crisis, a Leader Must be at the Forefront”. It’s about the earthquake in Nabire, Papua. Chapters 3 and 7 are about “Turning Crisis into Opportunity”.
They cover SBY’s ability to combine instinct and logical reasoning, as seen when he turned the tsunami into an opportunity for peace in Aceh, and the food crisis into impetus for Indonesia to strive for self-sufficiency.
The book is crammed with examples of the impressive leadership qualities that Dino sees as having enabled SBY to steer his first term so well that he won another.
Other examples: Chapter 5, “A Leader must be Willing to take Risks”; Chapter 6, “Do the Right Thing”; Chapter 16, “A Leader Must be a Problem Solver”; Chapter 18, “Maintaining People’s Trust”; and (shades of Obama) Chapter 28, “Yes, We Can”.
What the book doesn’t cover, however, is how these impressive qualities are serving SBY in his second term.
There has been no lack of challenges, this is for sure. Even before he was re-elected, the “gecko vs crocodile” dispute between the Corruption Eradication Commission and the police — which I call “Gecko-gate” — had erupted (see my column “Gecko-gate: How to squander a mandate”, Tempo, Dec. 10-16). A wiretapping scandal reminiscent of Nixon’s Watergate crisis in 1974, it could be Indonesia’s biggest political crisis since the fall of Soeharto in 1998.
The bad news for Dino is that many see SBY’s handling of Gecko-gate as painfully fraught with indecision, confusion and uncertainty — and maybe even duplicity. In fact, I can’t help wondering if SBY has read Dino’s book yet? If so, it looks like he skipped Chapters 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 16 and 28.
In the meantime, another convoluted crisis of godzilla proportions has arisen out of the ruins of Bank Century.
In October 2008 this bank was declared insolvent by the Financial Sector Stability Committee (KSSK) — headed by Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and then Bank Indonesia chief Boediono (now the Vice President) — and bailed out to prevent a panic run on banks that might lead to another krismon (monetary crisis) like in 1997.
Bank Century was then taken over by the Deposit Insurance Agency (LPS) and, over a period of nine months, Rp. 6.76 trillion was injected to resuscitate it.
A spate of allegations followed in the wake of the bailout, all unsubstantiated so far. They include explosive claims that SBY leaned on Sri Mulyani and Boediono to bail out the bank; that bailout money ended up in SBY’s Democratic Party campaign funds; and last but not least, that money even went to Edhie Baskoro, SBY’s son.
Having to watch Aulia Pohan, (former Bank Indonesia deputy director and SBY’s in-law) go to jail for 4.5 years for corruption was bad enough, but having his son targeted too? Can you imagine the conversation around the Yudhoyono family breakfast table?
And the sacrifices may end up being more than just personal. Now political wolves from Golkar, PKS and PAN are baying for the blood of Boediono and, in particular, Sri Mulyani (whom they all hate because she’s an iron woman, relentless in her battle against corruption). Both hold positions that the opposition parties would love to fill with their own apparatchiks.
This is a major dilemma for SBY. Although they lack party support, Boediono and Sri Mulyani are brilliant technocrats and the government’s star performers. Together they drive the economic policies that have made Indonesia the fastest-growing economy in Asia after China and India.
Now SBY is sandwiched between, on one hand, dodgy but powerful political party elites in both the House of Representatives and his coalition Cabinet, and, on the other, his clean, brilliant technocrats who have convinced the world to have confidence in Indonesia again.
What will he do? Back the reformers or roll over to the vested interests? Chapter 6 springs to mind, Mr. President!
And while this is all going on up in the political stratosphere, other damaging scandals and dramas are unfolding down at the grassroots.
There is the cause celebre of Prita Mulyasari, the 32-year-old Tangerang housewife who, incredibly, was convicted of criminal defamation because she dared complain about a hospital’s bad service.
And what about Minah, the 55-year-old grandmother of seven who was charged with stealing three cacao pods, or the 76-year-old grandpa jailed for stealing bananas he thought were growing on public property?
Or Aguswandi, arrested for the heinous crime of charging his mobile phone in the corridor of his apartment building?
Unlike in the past, these cases are reported nowadays and social movements surge in response — like the Coins for Prita campaign that has so far raised Rp 500 million to cover her fines and legal costs. Why? Because the cases are seen as evidence that there is still no real rule of law in Indonesia, and that the little people are still crushed by a corrupt system because they can’t fight back like the rich and powerful.
Yes, SBY now acknowledges there is a “mafia” that clings to the bad old ways of the Soeharto era, but the public are beginning to see this is one massive, national crisis.
So what is SBY going to do about it? Can he live up to Dino’s book?
SBY’s name means “a warrior who is ready to face the challenges of life in a righteous manner”.
Let’s just hope SBY reads Chapter 18, and that the traits of leadership that Dino so admires don’t fail him in his nation’s time of need.
The writer (www.juliasuryakusuma.com) is the author of Julia’s Jihad.
