President-elect Prabowo Subianto (left) speaking to the media on April 24 with vice president-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka as they arrive at the plenary session of the General Elections Commission, which confirmed their victory. - AFP
JAKARTA: The Gerindra Party has said that its patron and president-elect Prabowo Subianto is in routine contact with vice-president elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka despite the furor surrounding a hugely controversial social media account linked to the latter.
"President-elect Prabowo and vice president-elect Gibran communicate regularly to discuss the incoming administration’s cabinet make up,” said Gerindra secretary general Sufmi Dasco Ahmad on Monday (Sept 30), as quoted by Tempo.co.
He further said that none of Gibran's inputs have been ruled out by Prabowo, although the former Surakarta mayor has not necessarily singled out any names for a ministerial or deputy ministerial post.
Sufmi’s statement came on the back of protracted speculations of frayed ties between Prabowo and Gibran, the son of outgoing President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, particularly amid mounting accusations on social media that Gibran was the owner of an old account by the name of “Fufufafa” on the internet forum Kaskus, a once-popular online venue for Indonesian youth.
The account has in recent weeks been scrutinised by social media users due to several politically incorrect comments that took personal jabs at Prabowo and his family, dating all the way back to 2013.
Communications and Information Minister Budi Arie Setiadi, a staunch Jokowi supporter, has denied that the account belonged to Gibran, despite scathing evidence netizens found suggesting otherwise.
Last week, Sufmi also reiterated that Prabowo’s focus remained solely on forming his cabinet and that the incumbent defence minister has paid no attention to the controversy surrounding Gibran’s alleged ownership of the “Fufufafa” account.
With less than a month remaining until Prabowo steps into office, speculation surrounding the size of his cabinet and who will fill the ministerial posts continues to grow.
The Gerindra party previously said that Prabowo wished to have a larger “zaken” cabinet, which in the Indonesian context denotes one consisting of experts in their respective fields, though these experts do not necessarily have to be outsiders to political parties.
While Prabowo has made a shortlist of potential cabinet members, he is still considering other possible names, including those proposed by political parties in his Onward Indonesia Coalition (KIM) and those proposed by mass organisations and professional groups, according to Prabowo’s spokesperson, Dahnil Simanjuntak.
Many parties in the KIM alliance, including Gerindra’s former rivals in February’s election, have put forward their finest talents as potential ministers.
President Jokowi, who tacitly endorsed Prabowo in the election, has been helping to pave the way for his successor with a series of cabinet reshuffles that have seen members of Gerindra and Prabowo’s inner circle acquire key positions in the government, such as Prabowo’s nephew Thomas Djiwandono as the new deputy finance minister.
Speculation is also rife that aides and colleagues who have been loyal to Prabowo during his tumultuous political career will join the cabinet, such as Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, a retired Army general who currently serves as Prabowo’s deputy at the Defence Ministry, and Gerindra lawmaker Sugiono. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
