PPP blames Golkar for rain

PPP blames Golkar for rain

BANDUNG: Rain men and shamans specializing in holding back the
rain have been in very high demand by political parties to make
their election rallies a success.

They have also been used in an attempt to cause downpours to
foul up their rivals' rallies.

Superstitious townspeople have said Golkar and the Indonesian
Democratic Party (PDI) hired upscale shamans who were able to
move clouds away from Bandung by magic on their campaign days.

When heavy rains threw the United Development Party's (PPP)
rallies into disarray last Sunday, a journalist asked a party
functionary if the Moslem-oriented party had bothered to hire
shamans.

"No. Believing in a power source other than God is forbidden
in Islamic teachings," the party official replied.

But another PPP official approached the reporter and
whispered, "We heard that Golkar was (that rainy Sunday) out
cloud seeding."

The government, which backs Golkar, recently said it
successfully seeded clouds to raise water levels of major
reservoirs in West Java. (ahy/pan)