Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The foundations once underlying the political coalition supporting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration has been weakened by two coalition members – the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Golkar Party, which have frequently opposed the government's policies.
Many critics blame the condition on poor leadership on the part of the President, the coalition's key figure.
Political observers J. Kristiadi of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Iberamsjah of the University of Indonesia (UI) found the coalition is no longer effective in supporting Yudhoyono's administration. They predicted conditions would grow worse as the 2014 general election draws closer and political bickering continues to intensify.
The two analysts were commenting on the opposition of Golkar and PKS to Yudhoyono's proposal to raise subsidized fuel prices by April 1. During the House plenary meeting on Friday night, PKS openly opposed the plan, while Golkar accepted it with certain conditions.
"It is not the right decision to raise fuel prices right now. We have carried out a study [on this]," Golkar chairman Aburizal Bakrie was quoted as saying by Antara in Jayapura on Friday night.
Kristiadi said the stance of Golkar and PKS on the fuel plan is not their first opposition to government policy but Yudhoyono appeared powerless and took no action.
"Yudhoyono should expel the two parties from the coalition if they do not voluntarily quit the coalition. Or, he may take more drastic action by disbanding the coalition, if it is no longer effective," Kristiadi said.
Yudhoyono, who won 60 percent of the vote in 2009 in his reelection, should dissolve the coalition and replace all ministers from his coalition with professionals in order to make the best of his remaining two years in office, Kristiadi added.
Golkar and PKS had also shown hostility toward the coalition by joining the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), the Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) and the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) to carry out a political investigation into the RP 6.7 trillion (US$730 million) Bank Century scandal in 2010.
Both Golkar and PKS also disagreed with the government on rice imports in 2011, the moratorium on remission for terrorist and corruption convicts, and certain strategic issues in the legislative election bill.
The four other coalition members are Yudhoyono's Democratic Party (PD), the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Awakening Party (PKB). The PD faction continually asked the President to expel the PKS from the coalition for its rebellious stance.
Apart from having their own political agendas, Kristiadi said Golkar and PKS had dared to play the opposition card, confident in their suspicion that Yudhoyono was too weak to run the government and lead the coalition at the same time.
"Golkar and PKS have taken the opposition stance because apparently they gain nothing from the fuel price hikes and they don't want to lose face before the public, especially their supporters," he said. Iberamsyah said PKS had anticipated the consequences of its chosen political stance, including the risk of losing three ministerial posts.