Mega comes bearing gifts as election runoff nears

Mega comes bearing gifts as election runoff nears

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu

President Megawati Soekarnoputri visited Palu, the capital of
Central Sulawesi province, on Tuesday, with the presidential
election runoff now just two weeks away.

She inaugurated several projects in the province during her
one-day visit, but fell short of making a much-awaited statement
on the prolonged sectarian conflict in Poso regency, which is
located only some one hundred kilometers from Palu.

In an impromptu speech in Palu, the President only called on
people in Palu to preserve order and security ahead of election
runoff on September 20, when she will face a tough challenge in
the personage of Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Megawati, who was accompanied by Minister of Settlement and
Regional Infrastructure Soenarno during the visit, also urged
people in the city to protect the environment.

It was Megawati's second visit to Palu after a previous visit
to the city in 2002.

Palu has been badly affected by the sectarian conflict in
Poso, which broke out in 2000. The conflict claimed the lives of
some 2,000 Muslims and Christians, and largely subsided two years
later after a government-sponsored peace pact.

However, sporadic attacks are still happening in Poso and
Palu, claiming some lives and fueling fears of further violence
among Palu and Poso residents.

The recent killings of a Christian clergywoman and a senior
prosecutor were two clear signs that the sectarian conflict in
the area is far from over, and also reveal the apparent inability
of the government to address the security problem.

Projects worth a total of Rp 265.663 billion (US$28 million)
were inaugurated by Megawati during her visit to Palu. The
projects included a clean water project, a project to renovate
the road between Taripa and Tomata in Morowali regency, an
irrigation project in the same regency, and the construction of
refugee camps in Morowali and Poso regencies.

Besides inaugurating the projects in her capacity as
President, Megawati also handed over billions of rupiah in
grants, soft loans and scholarships to people and students in
Central Sulawesi province.

This included scholarships funded by the state pawnshop
company, PT Pegadaian, and state social insurance company PT
Jamsostek.

After inaugurating the projects and handing over grants, soft
loans and scholarships, Megawati formally opened the Al-Khairaat
Islamic Boarding School National Meeting at a separate location
in Palu. In her speech, Megawati promised that she would help
facilitate the opening of a school of medicine at Al-Khairat
Islamic University in the city.

The Al-Khairaat Muslim organization was established in 1930
and it now runs a university, 1,557 Islamic elementary schools,
35 Islamic boarding schools, three polyclinics and dozens of
other business units. The organization boasts millions of
followers in the eastern part of Indonesia.