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People\'s Involvement Needed

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JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The dynamics of preparations for the formation of the Cabinet of the government of Joko “Jokowi” Widodo-Ma\'ruf Amin have seemingly been a game at the elite level. Input from various community groups are still needed in the determination of ministerial seats and the formation of government for the 2019-2024 term.

Jokowi has accepted the general chairpersons and caretakers of the executive boards of political parties supporting him at the Presidential Palace. This happened on 1 July 2019 by accepting representatives of the Golkar Party, followed by the National Awakening Party (PKB) the next day, as well as the NasDem Party on 8 July and the United Development Party (PPP) on 9 July.

In the various closed meetings, Jokowi reportedly not only asked for input regarding the direction of the government in the next five years but discussed the formation of the Cabinet.

At the same time, a number of political parties supporting Jokowi-Amin have prepared a number of members to be proposed as ministers. Several political parties also accelerated internal consolidation through the holding of congresses and similar forums, before the inauguration of the president and vice president on 20 October 2019. It was believed to facilitate the discussion process regarding positions in the Jokowi-Amin government in the next five years.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla said the objective of every political activity was to get a share of power. Therefore, Kalla was not worried about the intensity of lobbying by politicians to Jokowi as the president-elect for the 2019-2024 term.

Nevertheless, Kalla further said, of course there are rules and fairness in the division of ministerial seats. "The party that gets a lot of seats also gets an adequate [number of positions] in the Cabinet," he said. Separately, Secretary-

General of PPP Arsul Sani said the division of ministerial seats can indeed be carried out proportionally according to political party votes in the legislative elections. Therefore, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) will get the largest ministerial quota, followed by Golkar, PKB, NasDem and the PPP. Meanwhile, for new political parties that did not get seats in the House of Representatives, they will still be considered because they made an effort during the elections.

The elite’s game

A researcher from the Association for Elections and Democracy, Usep Hasan, saw the process of forming the Cabinet 2019-2024 as a game between the elites. "If the Cabinet that is formed later illustrates the strong intervention of political parties, Jokowi can be considered to have failed in fully utilizing his prerogative to further improve the government in the next five years," he said.

With regard to this, Usep hoped that Jokowi would optimally use his prerogative and not allow himself to be driven by the interests of political parties in forming the Cabinet.

One way that Jokowi can do to realize this is also by asking for input from civil society groups and mass organizations, such as Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, as well as academics in forming the Cabinet. Input such as those from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) also need to be heard.

PDI-P Secretary-General Hasto Kristiyanto said the Jokowi-Amin government needed effective political support through the House. Therefore, political parties supporting Jokowi-Amin play an important role in supporting the effectiveness of the government.

Nevertheless, Hasto further said, the final decision in the formation of the Cabinet remained in Jokowi\'s hands. The interests of supporting political parties will still be limited by national interests, especially related to the implementation of future development programs.

"All government political agendas must go through cooperation with the DPR. Therefore, a clearer coordination mechanism is needed in the future to supervise Pak Jokowi\'s government. We will discuss it internally in the coalition," Hasto said.

After 17 August 2019, Hasto added, Jokowi will meet again with the chairpersons of his supporting parties to discuss the formation of the Cabinet. The structure of the Cabinet will be finalized first, later followed by the determination of those who will fill it.

"There are stages in appointing the ministers. The president still has about 14 days after being sworn in to form his Cabinet," he said.

Handing over

NasDem Party General Chairman Surya Paloh said the formation of the Cabinet was in the hands of the President. "If Bapak [President Jokowi] considers NasDem important for the Cabinet, appoint [a minister from NasDem]. But, if it is considered not important, don\'t give NasDem anything," said Surya Paloh at the opening of the NasDem Party legislative school, last night, in Jakarta.

According to Surya Paloh, is not an easy time for Jokowi with all the input coming in, especially regarding the composition of the Cabinet. In this regard, Jokowi needs to assess which political parties are sincere in helping the government. (NTAAGE/INA)

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