SBY summons Gita Wirjawan to Palace

JAKARTA: Amid heightening rumors about an impending Cabinet reshuffle, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono unexpectedly called Investment Board Coordinator Gita Wirjawan to the state palace on Monday.

Gita Wirjawan, the 53-year-old Harvard University graduate who is stongly tipped to replace Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo in the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle, arrived alone at the State Palace at 4 p.m..

Tribunnews.com reported that no other minister had accompanied Gita during his visit, which created the impression that the meeting between President Yudhoyono and Gita was highly personal.

Gita was strongly linked to the finance minister post after Yudhoyono and House lawmakers reportedly appeared to lose confidence in the current minister, Agus Martowardojo.

During a political discussion on Sept. 25, political observer Muhammad Qodari categorized Agus – with State-Owned Enterprises Minister Mustafa Abubakar and Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Zahedy Saleh – as “highly likely” to be replaced in the upcoming reshuffle.