President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo installed on Friday Comr. Gen. Badrodin Haiti as the new National Police chief, effectively ending a months-long standoff that resulted in the weakening of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and threatened to derail part of the newly elected President'€™s agenda.

The selection for a new police chief has been marred with controversy since Jokowi nominated in January Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan, a confidant of the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Megawati Soekarnoputri, a move that many saw as a result of Jokowi bowing to political pressure.

The KPK named Budi a graft suspect shortly after Jokowi announced his nomination. The National Police retaliated by naming then KPK chairman Bambang Widjojanto a suspect in a perjury case. The police later moved against KPK chairman Abraham Samad by naming him a suspect in a document forgery case.

Senior officials in Jokowi'€™s administration expressed hope that Badrodin could mend the strained relationship between the police and the KPK.

'€œThe [inauguration of the] new police chief has brought an end to the vacuum within the force. Now he can start working to improve the police,'€ Coordinating Legal, Political and Security Affairs Minister Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno said after Badrodin'€™s inauguration at the State Palace.

The House of Representatives, which endorsed Budi'€™s nomination in January, was initially reluctant to back Jokowi'€™s move to appoint Badrodin.

But after weeks of vacillating, the House on Thursday unanimously endorsed Badrodin after undergoing a brief confirmation hearing.

A House plenary session only lasted half an hour before declaring him as having passed the screening held earlier in the day.

Although some saw Badrodin'€™s nomination as a compromise, State Secretary Pratikno said Jokowi picked the right person to lead the police, deeming him as '€œbeing able to transform the police into a respectable, dignified and trusted legal institution'€.

'€œThe President also wants the police to be able to cooperate with the KPK, the Attorney General'€™s Office [AGO] and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre [PPATK] in eradicating corruption,'€ Pratikno said, adding that Jokowi had also ordered Badrodin to take stern action to reform the police.

Both Attorney General HM Prasetyo and KPK interim commissioner Johan Budi expressed similar hope that Badrodin could build synergy with other law enforcement agencies.

Shortly after his inauguration, Badrodin reiterated his pledge to bring solidarity to the police and build a better relationship with other law enforcement agencies, including the KPK and the AGO.

'€œWe [the police] must unite and be ready to face future challenges,'€ Badrodin said at the State Palace. '€œI will also make an effort to work with other state institutions, including other law enforcement agencies.'€

With the top-cop position filled, many have begun to speculate as to who will be named deputy police chief.

Speculation is rife that Budi Gunawan is among the candidates tapped for the deputy police chief position. Badrodin, however, declined to confirm whether Budi was still in the running for the deputy chief position.

'€œIt is only a suggestion. There are considerations, not only public opinion but also other elements that we need to consider, including internal dynamics [within the force]'€.

Badrodin said the police'€™s committee on the officers'€™ Rank and Promotion Council for High-Ranking Officers (Wanjakti) would not hold a hearing until next week to decide which of the eight remaining three-star generals would be fit to become the deputy police chief.

'€œRight now the position is vacant and all three-star generals will be assessed [by Wanjakti],'€ he said later on Friday at the National Police headquarters. '€œAnyone could be a good candidate. He [Budi] could be a good candidate.'€

The deputy police chief position is considered crucial as Badrodin is expected to retire in a little over a year.

Pratikno said he believed that '€œBadrodin and the Wanjakti will select a clean and professional deputy police chief'€. He also said that Jokowi had yet to receive a recommendation from the Wanjakti.

Police expert Bambang Widodo Umar said putting Budi Gunawan in the deputy police chief position could reignite friction between the police and the KPK.

'€œInternally, it would probably be accepted, especially seeing the way officers reacted to the pretrial ruling at the South Jakarta District Court. But he could spark new conflict [with the KPK],'€ he said.

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