Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Yudo Margono, the president's sole pick for the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) commander, is scheduled to attend a hearing hosted by the House of Representatives Defense Committee on Friday that could be a rubber-stamping procedure to confirm his nomination.

Defense Committee Chairwoman Rep. Meutya Hafid [Golkar Party] said on Thursday the "fit and proper test" will be conducted the whole day.

It will begin with the verification of administrative requirements in the morning, followed by a presentation from the appointee and a Q and A session, she said. "The TNI commander nominee is given 30 minutes for his presentation," Meutya said.

The hearing will be open to the public but Meutya said some parts of it might be held behind a closed door if the topic is confidential such as the country's defense strategy."After the hearing is concluded, we will conduct factual verification at his private residence," Meutya said.

Yudo, who turned 67 last month, has been assigned to at least 19 posts in eight different places since he graduated from the naval academy in 1988. He also has become a captain of five different Navy ships until 2010.

Before being appointed as the Navy chief of staff, Yudo was involved in the construction of two makeshift Covid-19 hospitals on Galang Island and at Jakarta's athletes' village.

He's married to Veronica Yulis Prihayati, a middle-ranking police officer, and they have three sons.

President Joko Widodo said earlier that Yudo's appointment is based more on the rotating leadership of the TNI. In the past nine years, the Indonesian military has been led by three Army generals and one air chief marshal.

The last Navy chief of staff to lead the Indonesian military is Admiral Agus Suhartono, who retired in August 2013.

During the 32-year tenure of President Soeharto, the top post of the military was given to Army generals only. President Abdurrahman Wahid was the first in the post-Soeharto era to depart from the tradition by appointing Admiral Widodo Adi Sutjipto as the TNI commander in 2000.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/yudo-margono-set-to-undergo-house-hearing-on-his-tni-chief-nominatio