Susilo unveils plans for first 100 days
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post/Bogor
Challenger and favorite Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is predicted to emerge the winner of the election runoff over incumbent, President Megawati Soekarnoputri, has begun to unveil plans for his first 100 days in power.
Susilo, who was once coordinating minister for political and security affairs in Megawati's cabinet, said on Wednesday that he would focus on domestic problems and refrain from making state visits in his first few months as president.
"In the first 100 days, I will concentrate on dealing with problems in Aceh and other troubled spots. I will also hold dialogs with common people, including farmers and fishermen, and avoid traveling abroad -- unless it is for a very important reason.
"I believe that, the more people I see, the more problems I acknowledge," Susilo said, during a lunch with a group of teachers from SMA Negeri 1 High School in Cileungsi, located some five kilometers away from Susilo's private residence in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java.
With over 102 million ballots counted on Wednesday, Susilo led with 61 percent of the vote, while Megawati had 39 percent, according to the General Elections Commission (KPU).
The official tally will be announced by Oct. 5, and the new president is to be sworn in on Oct. 20 for a five-year term.
Wednesday's informal gathering was held following a request from the teachers to meet with Susilo, who has promised to implement better programs for education.
"I wish the state could provide better salaries for you, and more opportunities for the poor to go to school. Who do you want me to pick as minister of national education?," Susilo asked the teachers.
Alluding to conflicts in Aceh, Susilo said that "the Unitary State of Indonesia is a final concept, and there will be no compromises."
"I know that military operations are not the only answer (to conflicts in Aceh). I will ask the secessionist group to reunite with Indonesia and grant the territory special autonomy.
"I believe that, within the next two or three years, Aceh will have a better future. The conflict must be resolved in a fair manner, and as peacefully as possible," he said.
As a coordinating minister, Susilo negotiated a peace deal with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in 2003. The deal collapsed within months. Both the government and GAM blamed each other for committing violations, driving Megawati to launch an offensive operation in May last year, which left at least 2,200 people dead.
Papua, the country's easternmost resource-rich province, has also staged a low-level armed struggle since the 1960s, following a U.N.-sponsored referendum that declared the territory to be part of Indonesia -- a referendum that was later regarded as a sham.
Meanwhile, the district of Poso in Central Sulawesi and the nearby Maluku islands have dealt with sectarian conflicts between Christians and Muslims since 1999.
Early in the day, Susilo met with a group representing workers of PT Dirgantara Indonesia, who were laid off due to a policy imposed by the company's board of directors.
"Pak Susilo, problems in our company are the result of widespread corruption. Please do something to evaluate the case, because you have promised to directly lead a team that combats corruption," one of the workers said.
Susilo once said he would set up and directly lead teams to monitor three main issues affecting the country's recovery -- corruption, terrorism and education.