SINGAPORE -- Two months after a tsunami ravaged Aceh and parts of North Sumatra province, a joke making the rounds in Jakarta says the initials of In- donesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla, or SBY-JK, stand for Sudah banyak yang jadi korban ("Never have there been so many victims"). Indeed, since Yudhoyono's inauguration in October, Indonesia has been hit by several earthquakes and floods.
Planning Board State Minister Sri Mulyani has rightfully declared that the Aceh disaster will constitute the administration's biggest test. The administration's handling of the disaster serves as a framework in which its overall performance can be gauged in eight ways:
* Yudhoyono has been consolidating the executive office following the weak administration of his predecessor, Megawati Sukarnoputri. Yudhoyono's ministers now coordinate their positions before commenting on issues in public, lending more coherence to the president. However, concerns have surfaced over Yudhoyono's compatibility with Kalla, who has a strong personality and has been elected chairman of Golkar, Indonesia's largest political party in Parliament. Some differences have emerged between the "presidential couple" over Aceh.