Harmoko to be president?

Harmoko to be president?

DENPASAR, Bali: Harmoko, the chief of the ruling Golkar party
and Minister of Information, is apparently popular among students
in this famed tourist island.

Skema-B, an official student body, plumped for him to run for
president in 1998 to replace 75-year-old President Soeharto, who
has been in power unchallenged for the past 30 years.

"In our congress from June 8 to 9 we agreed to support Harmoko
for the upcoming presidential race," spokesman for Skema-B
Widiana Kepakisan announced.

The "congress" heated up when participants came up with names
for their presidential candidates. Some proposed Megawati
Soekarnoputri, chef of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and
others backed Ismail Hasan Metareum, head of the Moslem-based
United Development Party (PPP).

Megawati was rejected because her party is disintegrating, and
Ismail Hasan was turned down because his party is Moslem-based.

An intellectual who declined to be named said that he believed
the students were only making fun of Harmoko. (23/pan)