Jakarta – Golkar chief Akbar Tandjung has said he would want to be president if his party posts a strong win in the forthcoming election. There would be pressure from within the party to head a ticket and aim for the presidential post, he said.

Mr Akbar said: "If Golkar has significant votes, then the problem is that the leaders of Golkar all over Indonesia would like a candidate from Golkar to become president. I cannot say our party will become the winner, but I can say our party will increase votes ... quite significantly." He said he hoped Golkar would be able to win some 30 per cent of the parliamentary vote.

Though this is the first time in recent months that he has laid claim to the top position, it would not come as a surprise to Indonesia observers. They had always sensed that taking the presidential title had always been his prefered choice.

Despite his ambitions, Mr Akbar made it quite clear that Golkar was still ready to take the vice-presidency on a joint ticket with Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) in July should Ms Megawati's party outperform Golkar. It will all depend on the April 5 election results.

He said he had held informal talks with Ms Megawati and was optimistic about a coalition with PDI-P. "I think the chance is quite possible," he said in an interview a week after being acquitted by the Supreme Court of a graft conviction.

Some 24 parties are preparing to take part in the parliamentary election – which virtually guarantees that no party will win a majority. Opinion polls put Golkar and the PDI-P neck and neck or with Golkar just slightly ahead as it taps into nostalgia for the stability and economic growth of Suharto's three-decade iron rule.

A coalition between Indonesia's two big secular-nationalist parties would likely ease investor concerns about instability stemming from the election this year. It could also remove the need for a presidential run-off as such a joint ticket could win more than 50 per cent of votes required to form a government.

But polls still show support for either party at only about 20 to 30 per cent level. In the 1999 parliamentary election, PDI-P won 34 per cent of the vote and Golkar 22.5 per cent. Despite disappointment with Ms Megawati's rule, most opinion polls show she is still the country's most popular politician.

Analysts say this means Golkar would probably need to defeat PDI-P by a good margin in April to believe it could put forward a candidate to beat Ms Megawati in the presidential polls.

Golkar will decide who will lead any ticket in the presidential election after the April poll. But after his acquittal, Mr Akbar is tipped as the favourite. He had maintained his innocence in the graft case, which involved the alleged misuse of US$4 million in government funds in 1999.