Guruh won't campaign for any party

Guruh won't campaign for any party

JAKARTA (JP): Guruh Soekarnoputra, a senior member of the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and younger brother of ousted
chief Megawati Soekarnoputri, declared yesterday he will not
campaign for any of the political parties contesting the general
elections in May.

"I will not campaign for PDI either," he said during the
breaking of the fast meal at his residence in Kebayoran Baru,
South Jakarta. "I will concentrate on my activities as an
artist."

Guruh, who has acted as a PDI vote getter since the 1982
general elections, cited unsettled disputes within the PDI as the
reason why he would not campaign for the minority party.

Megawati insists that she is the lawful leader, and not
Soerjadi, who ousted her in a government-backed congress last
June in Medan.

When asked about his close relationship with Kosgoro, the
business wing of the ruling Golkar, he said it had nothing to do
with the election. His seemingly close ties were "merely for
business and entertainment," he said.

Guruh, the fifth of former president Sukarno's five children
with Fatmawati, grabbed the public's attention in October when it
was rumored that he would jump ship to Golkar. Since then he has
secured business deals, mainly in the entertainment field, with
Kosgoro.

Due to his influence in Indonesian politics, Guruh is
reportedly being wooed by the three political contestants -- the
ruling Golkar, the United Development Party (PPP) and the PDI.

The three groupings will vie for the available 425 seats of
the overall 500 seats in the House of Representatives (DPR) this
year.

Guruh, who celebrated his 44th birthday yesterday, is now
chairman of Gencar Semarak Perkasa Production, which organizes
art and cultural exhibitions. He said that he was willing to help
all of the parties in the field of entertainment, but that he
would not campaign for any of them.

He added that he has not decided who to vote for.

"I will tell you when the time comes," he said.

He also said that he and his family would soon hold a meeting
to discuss the Sukarno family's position on the general
elections. (imn)