Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – While showing too much concern about his image and potential strikes from his coalition partners, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono seems to be unaware that his decision to appoint so many new deputy ministers might instead jeopardize the Cabinet and the budget.
Analysts and politicians have slammed Yudhoyono's decision to create nine new deputy ministerial posts, two of which will be added to the Finance Ministry and the National Education Ministry.
Yudhoyono's administration will have 19 deputy ministers, with possibly billions of rupiah having to be spent for their new offices.
"Despite repeatedly voicing the importance of bureaucratic reform, Yudhoyono is instead creating new positions, which will provide more inefficiency, both in terms of bureaucracy and the budget," University of Indonesia analyst Andrinof Chaniago said.
Three of the potential new deputy ministers fulfilled Yudhoyono's summons to the State Palace on Sunday. National Energy Council member Widjajono Partowidagdo will serve as the energy and mineral resources deputy minister; Islamic scholar Nazaruddin Umar will become the religious affairs deputy minister; and presidential special staffer in legal affairs, Denny Indrayana, will serve as the law and human rights deputy minister.
Many have praised the reputation and track records of the new deputy ministers. However, the absence of clear job boundaries between a minister and a deputy minister, or between a deputy minister and a secretary-general or a director general, will instead waste the deputy ministers' capabilities.
Critics have also suggested that Yudhoyono does not have enough courage to drastically change the composition of his Cabinet. Twenty of Yudhoyono's 34 ministers are politicians from the six coalition parties.
Changing the composition could create political jealousy in certain coalition parties, something that such a "safe player" like Yudhoyono would like to avoid. It is rumored that Yudhoyono would prefer to appoint a competent professional as a deputy minister rather than replace an under-performing minister – particularly when the minister hails from a coalition party – in the hope that the ministry's performance will be improved without having to significantly disturb "political stability".
His fear of confronting political party leaders, however, could also sacrifice able and proven ministers. For instance, Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo, well-known for his tough reform efforts, is speculated to be one of Yudhoyono's upcoming reshuffle targets because of his failure to serve the business interests belonging to the family of Golkar chairman Aburizal "Ical" Bakrie.
Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring is also considered to be in a precarious position, as his post is closely eyed by Bakrie's empire, which includes businesses in the telecommunications sector. Golkar executive Lalu Mara denied the speculations. "Pak Ical told me that he respected the President's prerogative to pick his aides," he said.
Some analysts, however, view it as a possible part of Yudhoyono's "political survival" and "exit strategy".
Given Golkar's impressive political lobbying at the House of Representatives, particularly when it comes to sensitive issues such as the Bank Century bailout inquiry, it is necessary for Yudhoyono to please Golkar's interests in order to secure his remaining three years in office, as well as to ensure that all scandalous cases implicating him and his family are buried after his tenure ends in 2014.