Jakarta – Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri should treat mounting support from Islamic political parties with suspicion as the parties might be courting her favour in return for short-term gains, political observers said.

Leading figures of the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP), the Justice Party (PK), the Crescent Star Party (PBB), Golkar Party and the Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) met here on Friday to show their support for Ms Megawati as the immediate successor to President Abdurrahman Wahid.

But an ex-member of PAN, Mr Bara Hasibuan, urged the Vice-President to remain wary of the purported political support, saying it was probably not sincere.

"There is a possibility that Megawati is only being exploited for the sake of immediate interests, and afterwards will be left out once she is no longer useful to them," he said.

Mr Bara, who recently resigned from PAN, where he was a member of the executive board, pointed out that the Islamic-based parties that took part in Friday's meeting and exclaimed their support for Ms Megawati were the same ones that led the battle against her during the 1999 presidential election. The parties had claimed then that it was unacceptable for a woman to become president.

Mr Bara, and legislators from Mr Abdurrahman's National Awakening Party (PKB), pointed out that the parties have still not retracted their statements rejecting the possibility of a woman president.

He suggested that the show of support for Ms Megawati was temporary and politically motivated, with the primary aim of toppling the President.

While it is not known if any political agreement was reached, the meeting was the first clear public display of a possible political alliance to propel Ms Megawati, who leads PDI-P, to the presidency.

Separately, a political observer from the National Institute of Sciences, Mr Syamsuddin Harris, said the meeting showed strong signs of bargaining, suggesting that if Ms Megawati replaces Mr Abdurrahman, she might have to accommodate the interests of other political elements.

A PDI-P legislator, Mr Dimyati Hartono, said on Monday that he believed Ms Megawati was already wary of the support.