Mega to travel with smaller entourage

Mega to travel with smaller entourage

JAKARTA: State Secretary Bambang Kesowo pledged on Tuesday
that the government would gradually reduce the number of people
traveling with President Megawati Soekarnoputri on her state
visits.

He said that the reduction in the number of delegates would
reduce the amount spent on state visits.

"We will continue to reduce the number of delegates on every
presidential visit," Kesowo said at a hearing with the House of
Representatives Commission I for political affairs here.

He was responding to queries from some legislators, including
Zulfan Lindan, Sidarto, and Yasril Ananta Baharuddin.

Zulfan suggested that the government should follow the example
of other countries that send smaller delegations of between 20
and 30 people.

The State Secretariat has been criticized for spending state
funds to finance the trips of nearly 150 people joining state
visits.

In the latest visit to Vietnam, the number of people traveling
with the President was cut to 75. -- JP