Jenny Grant, Jakarta – Only hours after President Suharto swore in his new Cabinet, his golfing partner, who is now also his trade minister, showed where his loyalties lay, putting the Government in a worrying light.
And it did not bode well for demands by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to see economic reform before continuing its rescue package.
During a simple ceremony in the great hall of the presidential palace, the 36 Cabinet ministers, including Mr Suharto's daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, swore to serve loyally according to the regulations.
Then, in his first statement as Trade and Industry Minister, Mohammad "Bob" Hasan defended monopolies the IMF has been trying to abolish.
"Monopolies are OK. As long as the monopoly is for the importance of all people, it's OK... and as long as it is in line with the constitution," said the timber tycoon. The 1945 constitution states that Indonesia's natural resources belong to the nation and should be developed for the good of the people.
Mr Hasan, who lost his lucrative plywood cartel under the IMF rescue plan, fended off a barrage of questions on his personal wealth.
"Some expatriates may say I'm a rich man, but I'm not. All the dividends do not go into my pockets but are returned to the people," he said.
Mr Hasan revealed he would step down as commissioner of car maker Astra International and other state-owned firms to commit himself to the industry portfolio.
He added he would not withdraw from the Dharmais Foundation or the Supersemar Foundation, charitable organisations set up by the Suharto family in the 1970s.
Mr Suharto has chosen a highly loyal Cabinet, but with a combined economic experience of only half the previous Cabinet.
And he has completely ignored calls from thousands of university students for a clean and professional team of chief ministers.
About 75 National University students clashed with baton-wielding police yesterday when they tried in vain to march out of their Jakarta campus demanding reforms.
There were no serious injuries, although one photographer was trampled as she was caught between the protesters, some of whom were throwing rocks, and riot police.
In Surabaya, the capital of the East Java province, 500 students staged a rally under tight security on their campus to demand political reform.
Analysts have been left with the impression that the military and the palace used the limited campus demonstrations as a safety valve to prevent a broader eruption of social discontent.
Military authorities have arrested three members of the banned People's Democratic Party who are alleged to be linked to a January bomb blast in Jakarta, reports said yesterday.