Description: President Prabowo Subianto reshuffled the government’s Cabinet, replacing five ministers and appointing a controversial minister of finance as Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa replaced the incumbent Sri Mulyani Indrawati. Subianto also replaced the ministers of cooperatives, sport and youth and the migrant minister in what was perceived as a government restructuring aimed at appeasing the demands from the protesters who caused large – scale civil unrest in Indonesia in the past couple of weeks. The focal point of the restructuring was the finance minister as most of the demands from the protesters were focused on economic inequality, corruption stemmed from political favoritism and economic growth issues. Sadewa pertained to the old guard of finance ministers and promised to bring more prosperous economic conditions in the country which would focus on the majority of the population.
Impact: Subianto’s government reshuffling comes after the pressure from the demonstrations deflated and peaceful conditions returned to the streets of Indonesia. The President’s restructuring campaign would only result positively if immediate reforming steps are undertaken to tackle the country’s swelling issues with institutionalized corruption, economic inequality and political favoritism. Subianto effectively avoided a wider constitutional crisis by revoking the housing allowances which pawed the way for wider changes within his government. The restructuring would be practically put to the test as the new group of ministers would be expected to deliver expedient results under the pressure of renewed civil unrest.