PDIP-connected family acquires media<\/p>\n
A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
With several months to go before election campaigns begin in
\nearnest there are indications that the ruling party is making a
\nforay into the print media.<\/p>\n
People close to the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI Perjuangan) have reportedly revived the old and now defunct
\nMerdeka daily newspaper and helped refinance the Islamic
\nRepublika daily.<\/p>\n
The new owner of Merdeka, Wina Armada Sukardi acknowledged on
\nWednesday that he had acquired the daily from its old owner, the
\nfamily of the late Burhanuddin Muhammad Diah for Rp 1.5 billion
\n(US$176,000).<\/p>\n
\"I just bought the name of Merdeka. I met Ibu Herawati Diah
\n(the wife Diah), expressed my vision and she agreed to sell it,\"
\nWina told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
But the younger brother of State Minister of State Enterprises
\nLaksamana Sukardi denied the rumors that the money came from
\nparty supporters or from President Megawati's husband businessman
\nTaufik Kiemas. Minister Laksamana Sukardi is a top PDI Perjuangan
\nexecutive.<\/p>\n
The media penetration will certainly strengthen PDI
\nPerjuangan's media grip as two months ago, Taufik Kiemas launched
\nthe Demokrat tabloid. The party was also believed to be arranging
\nfor the appointment of Derek Manangka as chief editor of RCTI in
\nMarch this year.<\/p>\n
Wina described the acquisition of the paper as purely
\nbusiness. It would be more profitable, he said, to buy the paper
\nthan to create a new one since Merdeka was already an established
\nname.<\/p>\n
\"It has no relation with PDI Perjuangan or Taufik Kiemas. I
\nalso have a brother from the United Development Party,\" he said
\nmentioning Samudra Sukardi who is an executive at the Muslim-
\nbased party.<\/p>\n
Merdeka was founded by Diah on Oct. 1, 1945. But, due to
\nfinancial difficulties, Diah handed over the management of his
\npaper to media giant the Jawa Pos group in 1995. But a dispute on
\nshare ownership ensued followed by Jawa Pos group's decision to
\nreturn the daily to the Diah family in 1997, which set up the
\nRakyat Merdeka daily.<\/p>\n
Late last month, Rakyat Merdeka's executive editor was
\nsubjected to a six-month suspended jail sentence and one year
\nprobation for insulting Megawati.<\/p>\n
Wina said he provided Rp 45 billion to develop Merdeka daily,
\nsaying that Rp 35 billion would come from his own pocket while
\nthe remaining Rp 10 billion would be provided by friends.<\/p>\n
\"We will launch Merdeka daily in January, next year.\" Wina who
\nwas former deputy chief editor of Forum Keadilan magazine and
\nchief editor Matra magazine, said.<\/p>\n
Besides reviving Merdeka, PDI Perjuangan people have
\nreportedly injected fresh funds into Republika which is owned by
\nthe Indonesian Muslim Intellectual Association (ICMI).<\/p>\n
The president of PT Abdi Bangsa, the publisher of Republika,
\nErick Tohir, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Two senior journalists of Republika confirmed the news.<\/p>\n
\"You can't contact him as far as I know, Erick is accompanying
\nBapak (Taufik Kiemas) in Singapore,\" said one of the reporters
\nwho is close to Erick.<\/p>\n
The maneuvers by the PDI Perjuangan movers and shakers to
\nenter the media business is believed to be a bid to help the
\ncampaign in favor of Megawati for the 2004 elections.<\/p>\n
Asked whether businessman Anton Sulaiman, whose office
\nbuilding, the Wisma Penta on Jl. Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta
\nused by Merdeka is one of the investors, Wina said: \"I did not
\nknow Anton. We rented the office,\" he asserted.<\/p>\n
Anton, who once claimed that he was close to Megawati's
\nson-in-law, Happy Hapsoro, was a businessman who was in the news
\nfour months ago for his alleged mediation in the controversial
\npurchase of Russian jet fighters Sukhoi.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pdip-connected-family-acquires-media-1447893297",
"image": ""
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