What’s next after President Jokowi disbands 18 state agencies?

INDONESIA – Indonesian President Mr Joko Widodo, commonly known as Jokowi, on Monday (20 July) officially dismissed 18 state institutions, committees, task forces, and teams—most set up by the country’s previous administrations.

The disbandment of those agencies will help the government shift its primary focus to the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic—which has infected almost 90,000 nationwide and nearly 15,000,000 globally—and the recovery of the national economy which has been shattered by the outbreak.

The effort to remove red tape was in line with Article 19 of Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No. 82/2020. One of the government officials disclosed that the dissolution may continue if necessary to avoid overlapping authorities with related ministries.

Mr Donny Gahral Adian, the lead expert at the Office of the Presidential Chief of Staff (KSP), told the Jakarta Post on Tuesday (21 July): “So far, there are 18 agencies that were disbanded with the Perpres. But there are other agencies whose tasks can be integrated with the relevant ministries that are still under review.”

The team on Extractive Industry Transparency, the National Commission for the Elderly, and the Inter-Department Committee on Forestry Sector are among the dissolved agencies.

The disbanding of those institutions aims to simplify the COVID-19 mitigation

Mr Sirojudin Abbas from the Saiful Mujani Research Center (SMRC) hailed the Jokowi administration’s move to cut red tape, saying that everything should be simplified to eliminate budget constraints and speed up the country’s mitigation effort.

“Those 18 agencies are related to the strategic sectors that become the government’s priority in the economic recovery. Each institution has its agenda, objectives, and priority. When the president decided to take a drastic move in response to the impact of the pandemic, everything should be made as efficient as possible,” Mr Sirojudin told TOC, adding that the latest presidential regulation on COVID-19 and economic recovery has integrated all related ministries, making the existence of the 18 bodies no longer relevant.

Despite mounting criticism over the government’s handling over the pandemic, an SMRC survey last April revealed that 52 per cent of respondents thought that the government responded to the outbreak quickly. However, the latest survey from the Indikator Politik revealed that trust in the Jokowi administration decreased to 52.6 per cent compared to May when it was at 53.7 per cent, Tempo cited.

Cabinet reshuffle is not a simple task to do

A video about Jokowi’s anger over his cabinet’s performance during the health crisis went viral in the middle of June, raising questions on whether the president would change up some of his ministers.

Mr Sirojudin predicted that the president will not overhaul his cabinet in the next one or two months given that the reshuffle will consider several factors such as legislation plan—the parliament is still busy formulating the controversial draft on job creation (RUU Cipta Kerja)—and political affiliation.

“However, if reshuffle must be done, we must evaluate how each ministry responds to the unexpected pandemic quickly. This situation is unpredictable. When the president elected his ministers in 2019 after the election, the situation was normal. Most of them are capable in their fields. However, everything has changed since the COVID-19 struck,” Sirojudin said.

Sometimes, it is not easy to evaluate a minister’s performance. The expert elaborated that some ministers have been familiar with the bureaucracy as they have experience working under the Jokowi administration. However, those from professional backgrounds may find it difficult to adapt to the bureaucracy and its complexities.

“Maybe, if the performance of those new ministers has been under expectation for the past six months, it is not because of their capacities, but other factors may play a role as they have to deal with a strong bureaucratic culture which has been rooted for long,” Sirojudin described.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Health has also been under sharp criticism for being too late in responding to the health crisis. Health Minister Mr Terawan Agus Putranto has been slammed for underestimating the risk of the novel coronavirus and, most recent, for the ministry’s low budget absorption.

An Indikator Politik survey showed that 64.8 per cent of respondents support the president’s reshuffle move, while 30.3 per cent oppose it, and 4.9 per cent did not answer.

The survey was carried out from July 13 to July 16, involving 1,200 respondents. TOC has tried to reach Indikator Politik Executive Director Mr Burhanuddin Muhtadi. However, the expert has yet to respond due to a busy schedule.