Andra Wisnu, Jakarta – Party officials who supported President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's campaign have already begun jostling for positions in his Cabinet, weeks before the official results of the election are due.
Yudhoyono, widely believed to have won the election by a landslide, is reportedly already taking names and considering candidates for his next Cabinet.
However, should he be re-elected, SBY will have to perform a balancing act, as only nine parties managed to get seats at the House of Representatives, compared to 15 parties in the 2004-2009 term.
The Golkar Party, whose candidate Jusuf Kalla is believed to have lost the election, is reportedly trying to curry favor with the incumbent. This move might anger Yudhoyono's vast coalition. Golkar supported Yudhoyono in his first term.
Industry Minister and Golkar member Fahmi Idris has already hinted he will join the new government, saying his party is not suited to be the opposition.
Meanwhile, a Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) official suggested his party should get more seats in the next Cabinet.
"The PKS has three ministers with the number of seats we have at the current House of Representatives. It is only logical that we get more since we will hold more seats in the next House," chief of the PKS House caucus, Mahfud Siddiq, said Friday.
The PKS, which is a member of SBY's coalition, secured 57 seats in the House for the 2009-2014 term, up from the 45 it currently holds.
When asked whether Golkar might be included in Yudhoyono's Cabinet, Mahfud said: "I believe that is something he would want to talk over with the coalition that supported him".
Bara Hasibuan, deputy chief of Yudhoyono's campaign team, assured the President would not sacrifice professional quality to please supporting parties, though he admitted that concessions to the coalition would be "guaranteed".
He said Yudhoyono's main goal would be to strengthen the presidential system. Observers seem to agree.
"There are strong indications Yudhoyono will not pick his team based on concessions to his coalition, because there will be fewer parties in the House," said Bima Arya from Paramadina University.
"He seems to be leaning towards officials not aligned with political parties, as exemplified by his choice of Boediono as his running mate."
Noted economist Faisal Basri agreed Yudhoyono would leave less room for parties to influence his cabinet.
Faisal urged Yudhoyono to restructure the Cabinet before naming names, saying that his previous Cabinet did not reflect his promise to reform the bureaucracy. Yudhoyono appointed 33 ministers to oversee his 2004-2009 government.
"I know we're a big country and we need a lot of leaders, but China has 1 billion people and they only have 21 ministers," Faisal said.