PKP eyes 10 percent of votes

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: The Nationhood and Unity Party (PKP) is setting its sights on winning 10 percent of the vote in the 2004 general election, chairman Edi Sudrajat said here on Saturday.

"We haven't set too high a target. With such an outcome the party would remain solid; that's the most important thing," Edi, a former defense minister, said at Hasanuddin Airport on a stopover from Maluku to Jakarta.

Edi visited Maluku to introduce the party to people in a province that was swept by sectarian conflict between 1999 and 2002. Party chief patron Try Sutrisno, a former vice president, accompanied Edi during the trip.

Try insisted the party would not aim for the presidency in 2004, but a strong and healthy party instead, whose members were loyal to the Unitary Republic of Indonesia and the Constitution. --Antara

;JP;SPS; ANPAa..r.. Scene-Sukhoi-probe Trade minister faces sanction JP/4/Rini

Trade minister faces sanctions

JAKARTA: The House of Representatives (DPR) said it would hand down sanctions against Minister of Trade and Industry Rini Soewandi if she failed to fulfill the second summons for questioning over her role in the purchase of Sukhoi jet fighters.

"We expect her to turn up this time," said chairman of House Commission I for defense Ibrahim Ambong on the sidelines of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Annual Session on Saturday.

Ibrahim chairs the House working committee of inquiry into alleged irregularities in the warplane deal.

He said the sanction would be in the form of a quarantine, as stipulated in the law on the composition of legislative bodies, endorsed by the House last month. It would automatically come into force on Aug. 10 if President Megawati Soekarnoputri failed to sign it within the next few days.

Ibrahim said the House working committee would send a second summons to Rini after the MPR session finished on Aug. 10.

The first hearing was scheduled for July 29 but was canceled by the committee at the request of Ibrahim, who was overseas at the time. --Antara

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Shipbuilder needs political support

SURABAYA: To keep state ship producer PT PAL Indonesia alive, the company has demanded the government's political support, its president director Adwin H. Surjohardjo has said.

"As a state enterprise, PT PAL Indonesia will not be free from political interference, but we hope we are not going to serve the government's political interests," he said on Saturday.

The absence of political support from the current government prompted the collapse of state aircraft company PT Dirgantara Indonesia. It recently suspended almost 10,000 of its employees due to financial problems.

Adwin said PT PAL Indonesia had strategic value, as Indonesia was a maritime country and therefore required a lot of ships for either transportation or defense purposes.

He apologized for providing only a little information on the company to the public so far.

"We choose to keep a low profile, although we have always maintained a good performance," said Adwin. --Antara