T

he Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) leadership insisted on Friday that its three ministers would remain in the Cabinet of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, despite its opposition to the government'€™s decision to increase the price of fuel.

Chairman of the PKS political faction at the House of Representatives, Hidayat Nur Wahid, said only Yudhoyono could sack the party'€™s three ministers from the Cabinet.

'€œIt'€™s clear in the code of conduct that only the President can decide the fate of ministers from political parties,'€ Hidayat told reporters, referring to an eight-point agreement that dictates that all members of the governing coalition must support the government'€™s policies, or leave the coalition.

Following a plenary session on Monday, which saw the PKS opposing the government'€™s fuel plan, executives of the Democratic Party and others in the ruling coalition had been clamoring for the Muslim party'€™s exit from the Cabinet.

Democratic Party executive chairman Syarief Hasan has said that the PKS is now officially an opposition party.

Presidential spokesperson Julian Adrian Pasha reiterated the government'€™s position on Thursday that the PKS was automatically excluded from the ruling coalition if it remained in opposition to the government'€™s decision.

'€œThe President is still thinking about what will be the best decision related to PKS ministers in the Cabinet. The party'€™s opposition will certainly will be one of his considerations,'€ he said.

Executives of the Democratic Party also hinted that the PKS would have the number of its ministers in the Cabinet reduced.

'€œThere will be action from the coalition chairman, President SBY, for this party [PKS], which remains in opposition. I'€™m always wondering whether they are a member of the coalition or opposition. They don'€™t support us anymore, that'€™s why action must be taken,'€ Democratic Party senior politician Sutan Bathoegana said.

The PKS now has three ministers in the Cabinet: Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Agriculture Minister Suswono and Social Affairs Minister Salim Segaf Al Jufri.

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 also involved former PKS chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq.

Sutan hinted that the PKS would lose one or two of its seats in the Cabinet.

A member of the PKS religious council (Majelis Syuro), Idris Lutfi, said the party was ready to have its ministers dismissed by the President.

Idris, however, was convinced that it was Suswono who would likely be shown the door.

'€œIf the number of our ministers is to be reduced, it will likely be the agriculture minister [Suswono] as he is implicated in a graft case,'€ he told reporters.

Suswono is one of several PKS politicians implicated in the beef importation scandal.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has charged Luthfi for abusing his authority as a lawmaker to rig the government-sanctioned beef importation scheme.

PKS deputy secretary general Fahri Hamzah reaffirmed that all PKS ministers would remain in the Cabinet unless the President showed them the door.

'€œWe are waiting for the President to clarify this,'€ he said. (koi)