The Bank Century brouhaha has sparked a renewed power play between President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his rivals that will certainly mark the country’s political dynamics in the year 2010.
It remains to be seen, however, whether this political struggle will satisfy the public right to know about where the whopping bailout funds went after the government rescued the dying bank. Uncertainty still lingers as well about whether these current political moves are intended to uphold the system of checks and balances.
An inquiry launched by the House of Representatives into the scandal may simply lead to horse trading which ends up with political compromises as in the past.
Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI) senior researcher Syamsuddin Haris found that during the first five-year term of SBY, the House filed 14 motions to exercise its right of interpellation but that only four inquiries materialized. The lawmakers also pushed for an inquiry into alleged irregularities in implementation of government policy eight times, with only two cases approved by the House plenary.
Syamsuddin underlined, however, there were no clear implications arising from the House’s political moves.
These tug-of-war contests previously occurred when Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party was a minority newcomer at the House as against big guns like the Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
The playing field has now turned upside down, with the Democratic Party playing the leading role in the House. And with support from a number of smaller parties, the Democratic Party has built a coalition that has secured 56 percent of the 560 House seats – not to mention Golkar which jumped on the bandwagon at the last minute. Yudhoyono will on paper find no difficulties to rein in opposition to his government.
But this is not the case when it comes to the Century saga and perhaps the next political stalemate will pit Yudhoyono against his own allies.
Public support for a thorough investigation into the Century debacle, which revolves around the government’s decision to inject Rp 6.76 trillion in bailout fund into the ailing bank last year, has also opened up a chance for the House to rebuild its corruption-riddled image.
But arguments between inquiry committee members from the Golkar Party and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati concerning the latter’s accusation that the inquiry would only seek her ousting from the Cabinet indicates that political motives look set to overshadow the genuine intention to unveil irregularities in the rescue of Century.
This extra political agenda has been set by Yudhoyono’s other coalition members, with sources close to chief economics minister Hatta Radjasa admitting that the National Mandate Party (PAN) is eying the vice presidential post should Boediono step down for his role in the Century case.
It’s too early to predict the course of the House’s inquiry, but possible resignations of Boediono and Sri Mulyani as the Vice President and the Finance Minister, either voluntarily or not, look to be conceivable outcomes due to the fragile coalition. The vulnerability of the coalition was visible following Yudhoyono’s decision to handpick Boediono as his running mate. Coalition members had expected Yudhoyono to select his partner from political parties to gain leverage in the House.
The formation of the Cabinet exacerbated the disappointment among the political parties with the way the political cake was shared among them, in particular on the role of the “neo-liberal” economists represented by Boediono and Sri Mulyani.
Like or not, the inquiry into the Century debacle will drive the House members to overlook many legislative items already on the table. The lawmakers have given priority to 55 bills to be debated in 2010, but the House – and the media – will focus on the inquiry process, which is expected to be completed early in February.
The wrangling over Bank Century and its settlement will serve as a test for the political elite groups in the country to rebuild their future relationships, particularly for 2014 when Yudhoyono will leave office turning the election into an open contest.
Compromises reached among the politicians within the House inquiry committee and between Yudhoyono and individual political parties could save the country from protracted political turmoil, but are not without risks.
Since the reform movement rolled on over a decade ago the House has not proved itself as the true representative of the people. Politicians have tended to fight for public causes to woo support in the national and regional elections, but then pursue their own interests once they secure their seats.
The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post.
