In the Eye of the Storm

Events at three locations thousands of kilometers apart seem to underline how close Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan is to Vice President Jusuf Kalla. The two important figures accompanied President Joko Widodo at the opening of the Consultation of the Maluku People at the Ambon Islamic Center two weeks ago. Kalla opened the event while Luhut was a speaker.

From Ambon, Luhut headed to Bali and went straight to the Four Seasons Hotel in Nusa Dua. There, the Indonesian Oil Palm Businesspeople's Association treated Luhut to dinner. Later, Luhut headed for the Westin Nusa Dua to spend the night. Coincidentally, Kalla stayed at the same luxury hotel. In the morning, both men met again at the Indonesian Palm Oil Conference at the Nusa Dua Convention Center.