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NasDem at odds with Jokowi, PDI-P following Jokowi’s cabinet hint
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President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo (left) talks with NasDem Party chairman Surya Paloh during a breakfast meeting at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta in November. (Antara/Yudhi Mahatma)
T
he NasDem Party, a member of the political coalition supporting President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, has cast doubt on its willingess to happily accept the composition of the next Cabinet indicated by Jokowi a few days ago.
Jokowi revealed on Wednesday that 55 percent of the members of his upcoming Cabinet would be non-politician professionals while the remainder would be from political parties. He also said the post of attorney general, which is currently held NasDem-affiliated Muhammad Prasetyo, would be filled with a professional rather than a party appointee.
This suggests that Prasetyo would be removed from his post within the next few months.
NasDem chairman Surya Paloh on Friday said it was fine if the party did not get the attorney general position in Jokowi’s second term. However, he said he was not sure that excluding political parties from the position would make law enforcement better.
Surya said choosing anyone for a position in the government should not be based on whether they were political party members or not.
"We have no problem [with the composition], but don't get caught up in a narrow dichotomy. The term professional is universal. There are political party professionals, scholars, religious leaders, entrepreneurs," Surya said.
Surya said he had met Jokowi in Singapore after the PDI-P’s recent congress in Bali. However, he refused to reveal what was discussed at the meeting.
