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| Friday, 24 September 2004 |
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Yudhoyono ready for power as Megawati admits shortcomings JAKARTA, Thursday (AFP) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was preparing to enter the history books Thursday after achieving a majority in Indonesia's first ever presidential polls, as his successor admitted shortcomings in her defeated government. With almost 104 million votes counted so far from Monday's poll, Yudhoyono had 63.5 million - a majority based on turnout estimates of 123 million. With a 61.1 percent share of the vote so far, he commands a landslide lead over the 38.9 percent for incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri. Neither candidate has claimed victory or conceded defeat in the vote, hailed as free and fair by international monitors, but Yudhoyono has already been preparing his new cabinet while Megawati conducted a post mortem on her term. In her final address to parliament as president, Megawati on Thursday sought to highlight the achievements made during her three years at Indonesia's helm but confessed her government had been found wanting. "There are a lot of things we still need to work on, including some very fundamental matters," she said, citing unemployment, poverty and education. Megawati stressed she had made great economic progress during her term and warned that her successor faced tough challenges, including the persistent threat of terrorism. Both issues were seen as prominent factors in the election which analysts said was largely a pronouncement on her failure to revive Indonesia's economy despite achieving relative stability. Yudhoyono, a former security minister who oversaw efforts to hunt down the men responsible for the October 2002 Bali bombings and other attack, rode to victory on a ticket of economic reform and fighting endemic corruption. She said more work needed to be done to tackle terrorists who have carried out three major attacks in the past two years in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-populated nation. |
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