PON: The achievement of Palembang

PON: The achievement of Palembang

The National Games (PON), opened by President Megawati
Soekarnoputri in South Sumatra's provincial capital of Palembang
on Thursday night, is the 16th of its kind.

The two-week event, held every four years, however is far from
the spectacular Olympic Games, held recently in Athens, as these
Games rarely have produced astonishing achievements from
Indonesian athletes.

After its success in making preparations for the Games,
Palembang hopes to one day host the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.

Because of PON, relatively quiet Palembang has turned into a
glowing city. Palembang has been reborn, thanks to the national
sporting event.

A sporting event, international or national, often turns into
a political and commercial competition because through sports, a
country or a province can revive its national or provincial
spirit. Hosting sporting events not only costs a lot of money,
but can also be a big money earner.

The ongoing National Games in Palembang shows South Sumatra's
success in promoting togetherness.

With limited funds, PON has turned Palembang into a wonderful
city. This is in contrast to the presidential campaigning prior
to the presidential run-off on Sept. 20, in which a huge amount
of money has been/will be spent, but there will not be any
significant or positive change for the people. -- Media
Indonesia, Jakarta