Indonesian President to Announce Cabinet ThursdayIndonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputri will announce her much-awaited Cabinet on Thursday, her secretary Bambang Kesowo told reporters Wednesday in Jakarta."President Megawati has (even) called the ministerial candidates," Bambang was quoted by the Antara News Agency as saying. Inauguration of the new Cabinet will be conducted on Friday at the State Palace, Bambang added. Megawati, who took over after her predecessor Abdurrahman Wahid was impeached on July 23, was expected to have announced her Cabinet last week but has delayed it till Thursday. The delay put a slight pressure on the rupiah's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar and the Jakarta Stock Exchange's composite index. Bambang further said that Megawati will address the nation ahead of the country's 56th anniversary of independence at the House of Representatives (DPR) plenary session on August 16. He said that Megawati was supposed to deliver a national financial statement at the DPR on August 16, but due to the delay in formation of the Cabinet's economic team the speech will be given in September. |
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