Joko Widodo to Reshuffle Cabinet on Wednesday
[Updated at 11:56 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2015, to add details on other possible replacements]
Jakarta. President Joko Widodo will reshuffle his cabinet on Wednesday, replacing key economic ministers who have come under intense scrutiny in recent months.
An announcement on who would be replaced was expected in the early afternoon.
"The new ministers will be immediately sworn in Wednesday night," a source told Investor Daily late on Tuesday. However, the source declined to name names.
Coordinating Minister for the Economy Sofyan Djalil was expected to be replaced, possibly by the economist Rizal Ramli, while media reports said that Rachmat Gobel would also be replaced as trade minister.
Another key figure who is reportedly on his way out is Coordinating Minister for Political, Security and Legal Affairs Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno.
There was also talk of Cabinet Secretary Andi Widjajanto being replaced by Pramono Anung, the secretary general of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
"I don't know yet," Pramono said when asked about the news. "I'm getting ready."
Others expected to be replaced on Wednesday -- according to media reports -- were Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Indroyono Soesilo and National Development Planning (Bappenas) Minister Andrinof Chaniago.
Calls on Joko to overhaul his economic team have been made since June and intensified after the country clocked in the slowest growth pace since 2009. The rupiah has also declined by 8 percent since the beginning of the year.
Foreign investors have mostly left the stock market after it became apparent Joko had failed to make good on his promise to push forward infrastructure development in the early months of his presidency.
The benchmark Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) is currently down by 22 percent from its April peak.
Instead, the government has had to deal with bungled imports of beef that sent prices skyrocketing and corruption among Trade Ministry officials that extended terminal dwell time in ports.
Other sources confirmed to Investor Daily that Joko would pick new ministers who are widely deemed capable in their fields.
The new ministers will be tasked to realize government targets of 5.2 percent economic growth this year, to keep inflation under 5 percent , the exchange rate of the rupiah around 12,500 per US dollar, an oil price of $60 per barrel, oil production of 825,000 barrels per day, and gas production of 1.22 million barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Still, the news of an imminent cabinet reshuffle failed to prop up the JCI, which continued to lose up to 2 percent when the market opened on Wednesday.
The market was also hit by negative sentiment from abroad, as regional emerging markets continued their slumps after investors sought safe haven in the dollar following a surprise Chinese devaluation on Tuesday.
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