SBY's farewell party starts after Mulyani arrives

A farewell party for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Cabinet began right after Finance Minister and Acting Coordinating Minister for the Economy Sri Mulyani Indrawati arrived on Friday.

Former and current cabinet members were already present when Sri Mulyani, who is close to Yudhoyono, showed up 15 minutes later than the scheduled time of 1:30 p.m.

Yudhoyono is holding a farewell for his Indonesia United Cabinet, which will end its term officially next Tuesday, at the State Palace.

The ceremony proceedings started with lunch.

Among those present are former National Police chief (Ret.) Gen. Sutanto and current National Police chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri, former state minister for disadvantaged regions Syaifullah Yusuf, former home affairs minister Ma'aruf and former minister for state enterprises Sugiharto.

Some former top officials, however, were absent. They include former state secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra, former law and human rights minister Hamid Awaluddin, who is now Indonesian Ambassador to Russia, and former general attorney Abdurrahman Saleh, who is now Indonesian Ambassador to Denmark.

Posted in: Indonesia Today