Abdurrahman to embark on overseas trip next week<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid will embark on yet
\nanother whirlwind overseas trip on Monday, which this time will
\ntake him to Venezuela, Brazil, Chile and Canada.<\/p>\n
Presidential Military Secretary Rear Marshal Budhy Santoso
\nsaid Abdurrahman was scheduled to leave for Caracas on Monday
\nevening to attend the two-day OPEC (Organization of Petroleum
\nExporting Countries) Summit which begins on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman will then travel to Brazil for a one-day visit and
\nafterward fly to Santiago.<\/p>\n
He will continue his journey to Ottawa on Oct. 1 and then take
\na drive north to Montreal on Oct. 3 to visit McGill University.<\/p>\n
The President is scheduled to arrive back in Jakarta on Oct. 5
\nafter two refueling stops in Vancouver and Seoul.<\/p>\n
Budhy said that upon departure on Monday night, the
\npresidential plane would be flanked by two Indonesian Air Force
\nF-16 fighter jets.<\/p>\n
He added the presidential plane would also be welcomed by two
\nF-16 jets from the Venezuelan Air Force upon entering the
\ncountry's airspace.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman, who has visited some 35 countries since taking
\noffice in October last year, has been criticized by legislators
\nfor putting global issues ahead of unsolved domestic problems.<\/p>\n
The House of Representatives warned Abdurrahman in June to put
\nfuture overseas trips on hold because he had used up most of his
\nannual travel allowance.<\/p>\n
House Commission I for security and political affairs said the
\nPresident had used Rp 52.72 billion (US$5.85 million) -- about
\n98.64 percent -- of his state-allocated travel budget.<\/p>\n
Presidential Secretary Djoko Mulyono once said that
\nAbdurrahman's overseas trips had become so frequent that the
\ngovernment had arranged a new deal with the national airline,
\nGaruda Indonesia, for future travel.<\/p>\n
He said the deal would ensure a Garuda jet was available
\nwhenever the President wanted to go somewhere. (byg\/prb)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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