TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President-elect Joko “Jokowi” Widodo initiated a plan to remove deputy ministry positions in his cabinet, although he said that he needed to take matters into account in relation to the plan.
“We’re still considering whether deputy minister positions are important or not,” Jokowi said in Solo on Friday, August 01, 201, adding that the workload for some ministers is quite heavy.
However, Jokowi considered that assigning deputy ministers would not be the only solution so that ministers can share their workload. Jokowi revealed that appointing deputy ministers would have impacts on the state budget.
“Director generals should be enough to help with ministerial tasks,” Jokowi said.
In the Second United Indonesia Cabinet, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono appointed dozens of people to fill deputy minister positions. Such appointment became problematic and was brought up to the Constitutional Court.
AHMAD RAFIQ