Tycoon Eka pledges support for Golkar

JAKARTA (JP): A top business tycoon expressed his readiness to support the ruling Golkar party in the upcoming general election campaign, Antara reported.

Eka Tjipta Widjaja, owner of the Sinar Mas Group, the number two conglomerate in Indonesia after the Salim Group, said Thursday evening: "I became a big entrepreneur because of the New Order and Golkar which are both led by President Soeharto."

"Before that, I was only a street vendor. This is why I want to help Golkar," he said in a discussion on people's economic empowerment sponsored by the group.

He further said he had no reason not to extend assistance to Golkar, which "always gives attention to the low-income society."

He recalled that before the New Order administration, there were some 70 million people living in poverty. "But now, there are only about 11.5 million people (of the 200 million population) living below the poverty line."

The tycoon expressed his hope that in five years no one would be living below that line anymore.

Asked how much he gave to the ruling party in the 1992 election campaign, he said he could not remember. "I never count the money I spend (for Golkar)," he said.

He reminded the forum he was a cadre, though he could not remember his membership number. "That's why it's obligatory for me to help Golkar," he said.

However, he refused to be a campaigner because "I am not good at it. In smaller meetings such as this I could speak, but in front of a mass of people, no. I'd be too nervous. If I'm chosen to canvass for votes, Golkar might lose votes instead."

Asked whether he was ready to be active in politics, Eka said: "I know nothing about politics. All I know is trade."

Also attending the discussion was another leading businessman cum Golkar leader, Fadel Muhammad.

Eka was among a handful of businessmen honored as top taxpayers. The total assets of his companies amount to Rp 19,500 billion and his personal assets reportedly amount to US$ 1.1 billion.

"Even though I have millions of dollars, I never ride executive class. I choose economy class to save money," he said. "Once, I reproached my son for flying first class, but he told me times have changed. If we fly economy and we meet bankers who give up loans, we'll lose our credibility." (swe)