President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono launch his music album

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has released his first music album, a collection of love ballads and religious songs he wrote. Entitled with “My Longing for You”, the album contains ten songs written by Yudhoyono after he became president in 2004 and features by some of the country’s popular singers. One of the songs he wrote during a trip to Australia to attend a summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) grouping in September.

“I took time in my busy schedule to express my feelings as an ordinary human being,” said The President. A former army general who crooned during his election campaigning, said it took between one to two-and-a-half hours to compose a song. As a record, Yudhoyono is not the only Indonesian general with musical talent. A former armed forces chief, Wiranto, who is expected to run for president in the 2009 elections, has released a collection of love ballads sings by himself.