Mega accused of manipulation in 'TVRI' appointments

Mega accused of manipulation in 'TVRI' appointments

JP/2/METRO

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri expressed disbelief on Monday
over the results of several TV polls about the most favored
presidential candidates, while on the same day an outspoken
legislator said the appointment of the new president director of
state-owned TVRI was an attempt by Megawati's party to misuse the
TV station to win her presidential bid.

To back up her justification, Megawati, who never wins top
position in any poll, cited the owner of Metro TV station Surya
Paloh as an example, because, according to the President, the TV
station always put Surya's name in the list of top presidential
candidates in its polls.

"Is it because he has entered the presidential race that he
always wins the polling? I thought Metro TV was an independent
station," the President told a group of the country's senior
journalists.

Surprised by the criticism, Surya, who was sitting in the
front row of the guests, spontaneously stood up and clapped his
hands at the audience. Surya, one of the Golkar Party's possible
presidential candidates, also saluted the President.

Megawati also said the members of her Indonesian Democratic
Party of Struggle (PDI-P) often expressed concern because in
those polls, her name was far behind those of others.

"I say to them, how should I know? -- I don't own a TV
station," the President said, bursting into laughter.

A Metro TV reporter, however, said that the station had not
carried out any polls of favorite presidential candidates. The
survey was made by the station's sister company, Media Indonesia
daily. But Surya often appears on his own TV station, sometimes
for 30 minutes, to boost support for himself.

The favorite person according to the polls, in which viewers
send their choice of favorite candidate to TV stations via short-
messaging service (SMS), is often dubbed an "SMS president".

Megawati, however, is not free from such allegations. A
legislator from the National Awakening Party (PAN), whose
chairman, Amien Rais, is also one of Megawati's rivals, described
the replacement of state-owned TVRI TV station management as a
systematic attempt to use the power of TV in promoting Megawati
in July's presidential election.

"I think the replacement is politically motivated and is aimed
at controlling public opinion. It will benefit the ruling party,"
said Djoko Susilo, chairman of the House of Representatives
commission for media and information affairs.

Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi, who is also a
PDI-P executive, appointed on Tuesday a veteran TVRI reporter,
Nasirwan Uyun, as the TV station's new president director, news
anchor Nunuk Parwati as news director and Alex Kumara as a
program director.

They replaced Hari Sulistiono and Enny Angraeni Hardjanto
respectively, who held the position only for 10 months.

"This is just a routine replacement to improve the company's
performance. That's all -- nothing fishy," said deputy minister
for strategic industries at the Office of the State Minister of
State Enterprises Roes Aryawidjaja, after swearing in the new TV
management.

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