LAILAH Mariah was surprised when she saw the face on television after trying to find him for about two years. “I thought he was struggling for the country,” said the 41-year-old. “It turns out he’s got a luxurious house and a wife.”

Djoko Suprapto did indeed appear on television late in May in an interview about the delayed “magical performance” he would present before President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono: turning water into fuel.