Before the day came to an end, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono sent a text message to Hilmy Aminuddin, a co-founder of the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) who currently leads the party's Syura Council. "Ustad, I need to perform istikharah first," read the President's text message to Hilmy, referring to Islamic prayers performed to seek divine guidance.

On that early Saturday morning two weeks ago, the PKS faction had joined the opposition in th