Image: BAY ISMOYO / AFP
After Anies Baswedan and Sandiaga Uno won the quick count of Jakarta Gubernatorial election, President Joko Widodo is reported to plan another cabinet reshuffle soon. Rumor has it that the president wants to keep Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama close by making him on of the cabinet's minister.
Jokowi firstly mentioned his intention to reshuffle his cabinetduring Indonesian Ulema Council's (MUI) Economics Congress inJakarta last Saturday. The president mentioned that if a minister cannot reach the target he has set, he would replace him or her in the near future. He also added that he already knows who he would replace and who can keep their jobs.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla in response to the report chose to wait for the presidents final decision. Reshuffling is the presidents prerogrative right, he said. Reshuffling or not, it depends on his assessment.
One of the current administration's coalition parties, Golkar, also puts the decision on the presidents hands. Reshuffle is the presidents prerogative right. Whoever he thinks would be the best to help himconductingstate duties, us, from Golkar, we are ready to help, said Golkar executive Yorrys Raweyai to reporters.
The Minister of Law and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly, in response to the rumour, stated that all ministers have to be ready for evaluation.
Reshuffle is fully the presidents authority, its constitutional. Evaluations should be run, said Yasonna to reporters. If not, people would stay on their comfort zone. [Evaluation] is a must so there would be targets that make the ministers work as well as they can.
Political observer Ray Rangkuti told Tempo that there is another possible reason why Jokowi wants to reshuffle his cabinet. Possibly, this reshuffle is not just about [the ministers] performance but also for [a] political [reason], he said.
Ray continued that there is a possibilitythe president wants to replace a minister from National Mandate Party (PAN) since the party was among those who asked Jokowi to dismiss Ahok from being a governor related to the blasphemy case.
Meanwhile, Ahok says he does not know about it and chooses to have some good time with family after finishing his work as Jakarta Governor. I am just thinking that in October, after finishing the work I want to go on a vacation with my family. It has been a while we dont go out. [We would go] Everywhere we want, he said.
(brl/red)
