Losing Office in the Heat of Battle - Tempo.co English

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - “My focus is no longer here.” The words came slowly, bringing to an abrupt end a meeting between Finance Minister Prijadi Praptosuhardjo and the House of Representatives Budget Committee on June 12, 2001. That day, as lawmakers wrangled over revisions to the State Budget, President Abdurrahman Wahid, better known as Gus Dur, suddenly reshuffled the National Unity Cabinet. Prijadi was ousted. His post went to Rizal Ramli, who had previously served as Coordinating Minister for the Economy.

The news of his dismissal had not reached Prijadi beforehand—not from anyone at the Presidential Palace or from officials at the Finance Department. He learned he was out of a job only after a lawmaker interrupted the meeting to announce that Gus Dur had just unveiled the cabinet reshuffle at the State Palace. Prijadi was stunned. The sentence at the start of this article slipped from his lips.

Still, Prijadi took it in stride. When a Tempo journalist visited him two days after he stepped down, the man, who was born in Klaten, Central Java, on June 26, 1939, did not appear to be lamenting his fate. As it turned out, Gus Dur had actually hinted at his plans to dismiss Prijadi the day before the meeting in Senayan. But Prijadi had insisted on getting the President’s permission to finish work on the proposed changes to the State Budget.

As for why he was dismissed, Prijadi chose to remain silent. According to information obtained by Tempo at the time, however, his decision to raise fuel prices had been the trigger. Most economists considered the policy sound for the economy, but it was unpopular and politically suicidal. Prijadi, a former Chief Executive Officer of Bank Rakyat Indonesia, also frequently found himself at odds with Rizal Ramli, then the Coordinating Minister for the Economy.

The story ended in tragedy. On December 5, 2001, about seven months after leaving office, Prijadi died of liver disease.