VICE President Boediono appeared relaxed, lunching on a simple, vegetarian meal, two Saturdays ago, when Tempo met him at his home. Clad in an informal red-checked shirt, he was far from the usual image of officialdom. But his trait of not speaking much, preferring to listen instead, had not changed.

It is not easy to persuade Boediono to open up to the media. Throughout the second term of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono he has managed to avoid