Two weeks before he is due to take office, Indonesia's president-elect is refusing to compromise his principles by building support in parliament in exchange for plum jobs.
Joko Widodo, the popular former governor of the capital, narrowly won a July election with promises to voters jaded by generations of graft that he would bring effective government free of the old horse-trading among the political elite.
But Widodo has the backing of only 37 percent of members of parliament and without more support he faces a hostile opposition dominated by the old elite that could derail his reform program.
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For now, the first businessman to become president of Southeast Asia's biggest economy and his idealistic young supporters seem unperturbed by the prospect of the reforms falling victim to the principles.
"It's not a problem to have a minority. I had a similar experience in Jakarta and it was not a problem to get things done," Widodo told reporters recently, referring to his term as the capital's governor.
"It's the same at the national level," he said.
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Widodo's direct approach and success in cutting red tape appealed to ordinary voters and investors who welcomed his victory by pushing the stock market up to record highs.
But his support could evaporate if the opposition blocks the changes his supporters expect, all because he refuses to engage in "transactional politics" as the old-style of support in exchange for lucrative cabinet posts is called.
"What Widodo wants to say is that the transactions shouldn't be monetary as they usually are in Indonesia," said Achmad Sukarsono of the Habibie Center think-tank.