R

umors about another Cabinet reshuffle have emerged amid stubborn opposition from ruling coalition parties to the government’s proposal to maintain a high presidential nomination threshold — the requirement for parties to be able to nominate a candidate for the 2019 presidential election.

The government insists that the House of Representatives keep the threshold at between 20 and 25 percent in a bill on elections that is currently being deliberated, a proposal that has received firm backing only from three of the seven parties in the government coalition — the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the Golkar Party and the NasDem Party.

The four other members of the government’s coalition, the National Awakening Party (PKB), the United Development Party (PPP), the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the Hanura Party, have yet to make a final decision.

In fact, they are seen as leaning toward the opposition camp composed of the Gerindra Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Democratic Party, which support a presidential nomination threshold not exceeding 10 percent.

The political factions failed in their bid to achieve agreement on the issue on Monday. The day after, speculation of an imminent Cabinet reshuffle emerged among politicians.

That speculation was triggered by a plan of the House’s special team tasked with deliberating the election bill to put the contentious provision on the threshold to the vote at a plenary House meeting.

Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo, who represents President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration in the deliberation process at the House, has repeatedly expressed his opposition to such a scenario, saying the government would in that case consider withdrawing from the process.

Consequently, the General Elections Commission (KPU) would have to rely on the existing election laws to organize the first concurrent presidential and legislative elections in 2019.

The PKB, PPP, PAN and Hanura have said that they are now bracing for the third Cabinet shake-up since Jokowi took office in October 2014.

Jokowi carried out his first Cabinet reshuffle in August 2015 and a second one in July 2016.

Some politicians have noted that Jokowi could be using his reshuffle plan to force members of the ruling coalition into keeping the provision on the presidential nomination threshold intact in the election bill.

Jokowi is said to have informed party leaders about a possible reshuffle in May, ahead of the holy month of Ramadhan.

Back then, rumors that Jokowi would carry out another reshuffle emerged in response to PAN’s refusal to join other coalition members in supporting defeated Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama.

“We would not be surprised if the President removes us from the Cabinet, because we do have different stances on several issues with the government and other members of the ruling coalition,” PAN executive member Yandri Susanto said on Tuesday.

Yandri, a deputy chairman of the election bill team, added that PAN was prepared for whatever decision Jokowi would make in regard to the reshuffle plan.

Meanwhile, PPP chairman Muhammad “Romi” Romahurmuziy said his party would just wait for Jokowi’s decision. “To reshuffle the Cabinet is the President’s right. The PPP is ready for this,” Romi said. “We understand that members of the government coalition are expected to back the government’s policy.”