ON Friday last week a Golkar Party cadre asked media baron Surya Paloh at a party get-together in the Riau provincial capital of Pekanbaru: "Will your media support the Golkar Party?" Surprised, Surya only grimaced when the man, who identified himself as Zulfan, followed with another question: Will Surya make a political contract with leaders of the party in the provinces?

Surya, owner of the Media Indonesia newspaper and Metro TV, didn't lose