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The Red and White Cabinet: Between Prabowo's goals and the 2029 race
Learning from Jokowi who managed to break free from the influence of PDI-P matriarch Megawati Soekarnoputri, Prabowo, too, has the ability to move away from Jokowi's shadow.
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New team: President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka arrive for a group photo with newly appointed cabinet ministers, at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Oct. 21, 2024. (Reuters/Willy Kurniawan)
P
resident Prabowo Subianto's Red and White Cabinet was inaugurated on Oct. 21, consisting of 48 ministers, seven of whom are coordinating ministers, 56 deputy ministers and five heads of non-ministerial institutions.
Based on the statements of Gerindra Party figures in various media related to the preparation of the cabinet formation, there are at least four key sources from which Prabowo selected his ministers.
First, former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. There are 16 figures from Jokowi’s cabinet whom Prabowo decided to retain as a manifestation of continuity that he promised during the presidential campaign. More than that, the Jokowi factor manifests in his eldest son, Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
Second, Prabowo’s younger brother Hasjim Djojohadikusumo, who proposed names from among businessmen, including those recommended by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), in which Hasjim chairs the advisory board. As deputy chairman of Gerindra's board of trustees, which is responsible for the party’s financing, Hasjim certainly has the authority to submit candidates for cabinet posts.
Third, Gerindra’s executive chairman Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, who is also a deputy speaker of the House of Representatives. With his broad authority, Dasco has a privilege to propose names from among political parties and activists. His proximity with mining entrepreneurs has allegedly allowed him to propose people recommended by the mining barons.
Fourth, Prabowo and his long-time friend Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, who selected candidates from among the military, including alumni of Taruna Nusantara, a senior high school in Magelang, Central Java, which was founded by the Defense Ministry. Naturally, Prabowo would feel comfortable and trust military friends to help him realize his goals and protect him from various interests in the cabinet.
The important question then is whether the bloated cabinet can help him realize his vision and programs that he reiterated during his inauguration speech on Oct. 20.
