SBY's homeworks

SBY's homeworks
5th Nov. 2007
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2007/11/05/sby039s-homeworks.html-0

Indonesia is busy today in evaluating the performance of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as he completes his third year in office.
I think SBY's achievements far outweigh his failures. He has taken strong and unpopular (but extremely necessary) decisions like cutting the fuel subsidy.
He is pursuing single-mindedly his policy of eradication of corruption (the cornerstone of his administration's basic policy) and he has been so successful in reining in terrorist activities that even TIME magazine wrote a full-page report regarding the basic cause of its effectiveness: decentralization of the anti-terror campaign by involving local police (instead of military) and his ability to persuade the erring but repenting ex-terrorists to express their regrets publicly (radio/TV) for the deaths of innocent Indonesians.
The greatest achievement of his administration is the Aceh peace agreement, which was worthy of a Nobel Peace Prize. A second term will ensure that all the gains achieved by him will be institutionalized.
I have been an ardent admirer of SBY ever since he entered the 2004 presidential campaign and rejoiced when he won so convincingly. Indonesia has chosen a presidential system over the parliamentary system followed by UK.
Its 10-year twin terms give a much better opportunity to a president to show his achievements than an eight-year twin term, though 14-year twin terms (France) would have been better.
SBY won the election on his personal popularity, personal charisma and his one-man election manifesto as his Democratic Party was relatively new and low in funds and numbers.
He chose a defector from Golkar as Vice President but after the landslide victory of SBY, Golkar welcomed the defector back like a prodigal son and elected him as their party's chairman. With some 22 percent of the votes in House, his VP suddenly developed a clout that seems to have slowed down SBY's decision-making process.
SBY should take a page from political strategist Indira Gandhi. Like her, he should promulgate a presidential ordinance to reduce the runaway prices of medicines to make medical treatment available to ordinary citizens and reduce the high cost of education.
Using the funds from the fuel subsidy, he could easily subsidize the education to make it (almost) free. These two actions alone would not only ensure him another landslide victory in 2009 but the all-time gratitude of his people.
K. B. KALE, Jakarta