TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Instead of maintaining the ethics of statehood, electoral considerations are the main reason ministers are leaving or staying on in the cabinet. Pivotal was Mahfud Md’s case.

What can one say regarding the resignation of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud Md. from the Indonesia Onward Cabinet headed by President Joko Widodo?

As candidate vice president supporting Ganjar Pranowo, it is indeed appropriate that he resign. The law regulates public officials who step forward as presidential or vice-presidential candidates to not abuse their office. By stepping back, Mahfud’s candidacy is untainted by any conflict of interest.

However, it should not only be Mafhud. Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, who is a presidential candidate, should also step down. The same goes for ministers hailing from political parties who are officially throwing support behind a specific presidential candidate. Take for instance Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah, Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto, Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan, and Cabinet Secretary Minister Pramono Anung.

By resigning or taking official leave of absence, government duties can be clearly separated from the electoral needs of the presidential hopefuls. Governance can forge on with no impediments arising from the interests of these presidential and vice-presidential candidates. With their withdrawal, democracy will be safeguarded, and the neutrality of state administrators sustained. Public trust will also be maintained and the general election become a salubrious political procedure. After the ballot, the administration will be replaced with no abiding sense of distrust.

But this sanctity has been impaired at the hands of Jokowi. Instead of maintaining the neutrality of the government, he announced that the government, himself included, may take sides. Imperfectly quoting the General Election Law, Jokowi announced that the president was allowed to go campaigning.

This stance was directly related to his son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is running as candidate mate for Prabowo Subianto. Gibran stepped forward as a vice-presidential hopeful after the Constitutional Court altered the minimum age for candidate presidents and vice presidents. The entire process of alteration of the law was awash in nepotistic meddling because it was decided by Anwar Usman, the Constitutional Court Chief Justice and uncle of Gibran. Anwar was later penalized for gross ethical violation.

Jokowi’s non-neutrality was then mimicked by his ministers in all three presidential candidate camps. No one tendered their resignations because covertly and openly, all are making good use of state facilities during their campaign rounds. Cabinet ministers stepping down or not is no longer seen as an ethical issue, rather as part of a short-term political strategy. Ministers who step back hope they garner public sympathy to enhance electability ratings.

Jokowi and his ministers thus turned the cabinet into an electoral battleground rather than an organization carrying out state duties.

To the press, Mahfud Md. said his resignation was based on ethical and electoral considerations. He wanted to be able to campaign at ease without being hindered by state duties. He had not stepped back from the outset he claimed, because he wanted to ensure the neutrality of the National Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI)—two organizations under his ministerial coordination. To certain parties, his resignation came too late in the game. They consider Mahfud to be insincere about his ethical position, rather he is aiming for public sympathy and garnering its electoral effect. When he continued as Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs prior, the security apparatus of the land blatantly took sides regardless.

Political parties are also employing the electoral argument to decide whether to withdraw or maintain their ministers in the cabinet. The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) allegedly is reluctant to withdraw its ministers right now because the party plans to use the resignations as its final trump card to shatter the credibility of Jokowi’s government, in the attempt to weaken the Prabowo position.

The same logic is being employed by the party to figure out when to use their political clout to impeach Jokowi—an idea that has been suggested by several political observers. Instead of taking this important step as the obvious ethical response to Jokowi’s shenanigans, the party is allegedly waiting for the exact right moment to incite a discussion about impeachment to smack down Prabowo electorally.

Until the end of Jokowi’s government this coming October, it looks like we cannot expect a government working for the good of the people. Until we know for sure the victor of the general election, Jokowi’s cabinet will continue being busy making their short-term electoral calculations. In other words, an ineffective government is detrimental to the needs of the public.

Jokowi is the root cause of this entire shambles.

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