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n choosing a vice presidential candidate, leading presidential hopeful Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo should feel no obligation to choose a running mate from within his Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), from other coalition partners, or from among other senior politicians.

Jokowi is being offered only one choice at the moment '€” accept a running mate imposed upon him by a coalition party partner. But the failure of all political parties (including Jokowi'€™s own PDI-P) to gain extra seats in the House of Representatives was down to their inability to select good candidates and put forward clear party platforms. It makes no sense to try and run a presidency in coalition with a second-rate vice president.

The results of the legislative elections, with no party obtaining more than 20 percent of the vote, means that the House will be split for the term of his presidential period. As a result, the nature of parliamentary support for Jokowi'€™s government policies will be through fluid, constantly-shifting and changing blocks of votes. This is not something new.

We saw that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono'€™s government was compromised in both terms of office, but more particularly during his second, when even coalition members of government voted against government policy in the parliament.

The idea that a coalition government, made up of several parties, could implement and achieve new policies that benefited Indonesia was a failure.

The result was a weakened executive arm of government (the presidency), a split House and political and policy inertia for the past five years.

Accepting a running mate from a coalition party partner would repeat Yudhoyono'€™s mistake, and seriously compromise Jokowi'€™s presidency and mandate.

So the strategy for Jokowi should not be to choose a vice-presidential candidate that suits coalition-building in the House or suits potential party partners '€” the National Awakening Party (PKB) and NasDem Party.

Nor should Jokowi choose a candidate from the host of names being tossed about, e.g. Jusuf Kalla is older than Jokowi and unlikely to take guidance, Mahfud MD has no political experience. Accepting options such as these will only weaken the executive and that of Jokowi'€™s presidency, and that'€™s what his political opponents are currently setting out to ensure.

So Jokowi needs to accept there will be a hostile House regardless of who is his running mate. Jokowi'€™s only choice is to do what President Yudhoyono failed to do. Create a strong executive arm of government. Therefore, Jokowi should run with a like-minded vice-presidential candidate '€” one of his own personal choice, one who is of similar age, one who has the same vision and goals, who wants to implement real reform for the benefit of the people and to eradicate corruption, and one from whom Jokowi can expect loyalty and unity, and therefore exert the executive arm of government.

Once elected, and without the burden of having to accommodate the demands of a host of coalition partners, Jokowi can then get down to the task of creating a strong and functional executive government. Jokowi can reject political appointments and can appoint technocrats to nearly every ministerial portfolio '€” leaving minor ministerial positions (eg. Youth and Sport, Home) to coalition partners.

This would end the last decade'€™s trend of politicians '€” many of them talentless, incompetent and open to bribes and corruption '€” taking ministerial positions and, thus, control of executive government. For instance, given that it is responsible for 20 percent of government expenditure, it is time that the education portfolio be led by a technocrat.

A talented democratically-elected president with a strong executive team will introduce sensible, practical and '€œfor the common good'€ legislation. Let the political parties and House and various vested interests fight and debate the issues. In the end, good and fair, evidence-based and analysis-driven policies will win the trust of the electorate.

A strong executive with people-oriented policies will always gain public support in any standoff with a divided House.

The writer, an expert commentator and observer of Indonesian politics, holds a PhD from the Australian National University.