Jakarta – While some ministers are preparing for their new positions in cabinet, former justice and human rights minister Hamid Awaluddin is in a slightly different position.
Shortly after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced his new cabinet lineup, the Jakarta Police announced plans to summon Hamid for questioning.
Jakarta Police Detective Chief Sr. Comr. Carlo Brix Tewu said Monday that Hamid would be questioned over perjury in an anti-graft trial. "He is no longer a minister, so we no longer need a permission from the President to question him." Carlo told reporters.
Hamid is alleged to have lied under oath in the corruption trial of former General Elections Commission member Da'an Dimara. Da'an was sentenced to four years and fined Rp 200 million (US$22,222), although the court found he was not directly involved in the procurement of ballot papers for the 2004 general election.
Other former ministers appears to be luckier than Hamid.
Former State Minister for State-owned Enterprises Soegiharto said that he would return to his life as a professional. Prior to joining Yudhoyono's cabinet, Soegiharto was financial director of the country's oil giant Medco. He is also a commissioner of a number of financial institutions. Soegiharto, however, said he would accept any new position that offered by Yudhoyono in the near future.
A similar statement was made by Abdul Rahman Saleh, who learned of his dismissal from the position of attorney general through a hand-written letter from the President.
"Let's see what the position is. But he (Yudhoyono) said that my integrity will make me suitable for the new post," Abdul Rahman told reporters after meeting with Yudhoyono on Monday.
Abdul Rahman said that one of reasons Yudhoyono had given for replacing him was the immense pressure that had been put upon him while in office. "You see, I lost eight kilograms during my stint as attorney general," Abdul Rahman said, chuckling, although reports said that he had been upset about his dismissal.
Former state secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra was offered a new post as ambassador to Malaysia but reportedly turned down the offer, saying that he felt the new position was akin to a consolation prize. Yusril declined to attend a meeting with Yudhoyono on Monday, in which the President was expected to explain the reason for his dismissal.
Former state minister for the development of disadvantaged regions Syaifullah Yusuf said that he was fully aware that he did not have enough political backing to support his position in Yudhoyono's cabinet. "Therefore, I can accept the reason for my dismissal," he told private television station RCTI hours after Yudhoyono made the announcement.
Yudhoyono has started a new tradition of giving new posts to ministers who terms ended before their limit of five years. Most former ministers in his United Indonesia cabinet were given ambassadorial posts.
Following the first cabinet shuffle in October 2005, former coordinating minister for people's welfare Alwi Shihab was named outgoing Ambassador for Middle Eastern Affairs while former finance minister Jusuf Anwar was appointed Ambassador for Japan and the Asian Development Bank.