Megawati visits Air Force cadets
Megawati visits Air Force cadets
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri
completed her tour of four military and police academies, with a
visit on Friday to the Air Force Academy here.
Megawati described her trip to the academy and the sultanate
town where she was born on Jan. 23, 1947 as a reminiscence of her
youth when she accompanied her father, the founding president, in
a meeting with cadets there.
"About 33 years ago I made my first visit to this academy,"
Megawati recalled in a pensive but clear voice.
Megawati was here to open the congress of the provincial
branch of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan) that she chairs.
A few months before her visit to the Air Force Academy in the
town's eastern suburb of Maguwo, Megawati visited the National
Military Academy (AMN) in Magelang, some 40 kilometers north of
here and the National Police Academy in Semarang, the capital of
Central Java.
She sojourned to the Navy Academy in Surabaya on Monday,
hours before opening the National Sports Games (PON) in that
city.
The Vice President recently complained that she could only
visit provinces while President Abdurrahman Wahid has visited
dozens of foreign countries.
She will make her first formal visit to Singapore on Sunday.
The President also selected the island state as his first foreign
destination after his election in October.
"I want to have a face-to-face meeting with all of you, and
convey my hope and my message," Megawati said after having lunch
with the young officers.
As guest of honor, the Vice President was requested by the
cadets to plant a sapodilla tree, locally called sawo kecik.
During her visit to Yogyakarta, she was flanked by Indonesian
Military (TNI) Chief Admiral Widodo A.S., Air Force Chief Marshal
Hanafi Asnan and Air Force Academy Governor Rear Air Marshal
Gaharudin Gunawan.
Later in the day Megawati held a 30 minute-discussion with
Widodo.
The admiral canceled his planned press conference due to poor
communication between vice presidential protocol officials and
TNI information officers. (swa/prb)