T

he ruling coalition has deemed the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) an opposition party following its rejection on Monday of the government'€™s proposed revised state budget, which will give President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono'€™s administration the legal authority to raise the prices of fuel.

Although Yudhoyono has yet to officially dismiss the PKS from the coalition, executives from his Democratic Party said that the Islam-based party was no longer considered a member of the government coalition. '€œEverything is now clear that the PKS is indeed an opposition party,'€ Democratic Party executive chairman Syarief Hasan said on Tuesday.

Fifty-one of the PKS'€™ 57 lawmakers at the House of Representatives voted against the revised state budget during a House plenary meeting on Monday at midnight. Six other PKS lawmakers were absent from the meeting.

The 51 lawmakers joined another 130 lawmakers from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party and the People'€™s Conscience (Hanura) Party, to oppose to the government'€™s policy of raising the price of fuel.

The PKS is a member of Yudho-yono'€™s ruling coalition which also includes the Democratic Party, Golkar, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Awakening Party (PKB).

Yudhoyono had originally given PKS four ministerial posts in his Cabinet. In 2011, Yudhoyono sacked PKS politician Suharna Surapranata as research and technology minister, following the party'€™s refusal to support the government'€™s position in a proposed tax graft inquiry.

Following the rejection of the fuel plan, the positions of the three remaining PKS ministers, Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Agriculture Minister Suswono and Social Affairs Minister Salim Segaf Al Jufri, are at stake. Tifatul, Suswono and Salim have repeatedly said that they would support Yudhoyono'€™s policy on fuel prices.

When asked about the fate of the three PKS ministers, Syarief said that the decision was in the hands of the PKS leaders. '€œIf the PKS thinks that their ministers have declined to toe the party line, then the party could punish them,'€ Syarief said.

He then suggested that the three ministers could join the Democratic Party to save their positions.

Separately, chief of the Democratic Party honor council Amir Syamsuddin said Yudhoyono would probably take stern action against the PKS as its latest move had created '€œinconvenience within the coalition'€.

'€œIt'€™s all in the hands of the leader of the coalition now, because the PKS has repeatedly refused to take the initiative to leave us,'€ Amir said.

Speculation is rife that Yudhoyono will only sack Suswono to punish the PKS. Yudhoyono has a convenient reason to fire Suswono due to his role in the beef importation scandal which has also involved former PKS chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq.

Tifatul meanwhile said that he was ready to be dismissed from the Cabinet. '€œI am ready anytime [to have a position] given or taken away. This is the President'€™s prerogative according to the law and Constitution,'€ Tifatul told reporters.

PKS politicians have also challenged Yudhoyono to immediately decide the fate of the party within the coalition, stressing that '€œPKS will never make the first move'€.

'€œDon'€™t expect us to take further action because we have a presidential system ['€¦] There has never been a clear-cut definition of the coalition. That is why it'€™s the job of Pak SBY to clarify it,'€ PKS deputy secretary-general Fahri Hamzah said.