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Missteps, lack of coordination loom over ‘bloated’ cabinet

Dio Suhenda (The Jakarta Post)
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Jakarta
Tue, January 21, 2025

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Missteps, lack of coordination loom over ‘bloated’ cabinet Cabinet ministers under President Prabowo Subianto take their oaths on Oct. 21, 2024, during a swearing-in ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)

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raft of missteps and lack of coordination among cabinet officials has colored the first three months of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration, as analysts point to the overburdened bureaucracy as the leading cause of the government’s issues.

The Red-and-White Cabinet, consisting of 48 ministers, 56 deputy ministers and seven heads of ministerial-level agencies, has widely been seen as Prabowo’s attempt to consolidate his big alliance of political parties.

But the controversies surrounding several cabinet members, as some observers have pointed out, have become a blemish on an otherwise benign first few months, during which Prabowo garnered a high approval rating, largely on the back of populist policies.

Among the latest controversies is a spat between Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono and the Navy regarding a 30-kilometer-long sea fence of unexplained origins in Tangerang, Banten.

Sakti declared earlier this month that the fence was illegal but opted at the time only to close it off, prompting the Navy to step in and begin dismantling it last week under Prabowo’s orders.

Sakti was quick to oppose the operation, saying evidence could be destroyed in the process. But he later retracted his opposition and instead promised to participate in the operation following back-to-back meetings with Prabowo and the Navy chief of staff on Monday.

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