Here followed, CNV selected comments of Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen in the above event concerning efforts to keep security for the elections, to find out who caused damages to the opposition Party’s sign and political bothering actions.
Security and Patience for the Elections
On behalf of the Royal Government, I am making this political message to the local authority and the armed forces of all kinds in every level and corner of the Kingdom of Cambodia to make steadfast efforts in maintaining security and order for a free, fair and non-violent election. I am grateful to all political parties and people for keeping high their patience. There was an incident in Mehmot district of Kompong Cham in one of the previous elections in which a man in the fight sustained head injury. HE Koem Sophearith and Mao Munivan, who then came to my house in Takhmao, confirmed that the injured man was not a CPP and sent for medical treatment in Bangkok with the cost covered by HE Koem Sophearith. I have taped the conversation. Dealing with these people, I have to keep the evidence.
I am calling on local authority of all levels and the armed forces, upon receiving this order, to serve all political parties on the occasion that they go meet people and perform their parades. Any political party can go or do anything they want anywhere but they have to go or do it on a different time. I am appealing to everyone to make this work. I also have a political message to party officials to keep up their patience. For whatever that may happen, please refer it to respected institutions – to the police and court, if it is legal matter and to the National Elections Committee, if it is anything to do with the election. I am calling on all of our people and officials not to retaliate to acts of insulting (from opposition parties).
If they insult us, please either walk away or take the time and patience to tell them your opinion on whatever the matter was in a polite way. For instance, if someone brings up his/her opinion that is detrimental (to the Cambodian People’s Party), you can just keep your head cool. Let them say what they think. You just kindly and politely respond: “For me, I think the Cambodian People’s Party is good because it saved people from the genocide regime of Pol Pot, rebuilds the country. I wonder if I have seen the opposition party has done anything for the country so far.”
For Integrity of Authority and CPP
There is this case concerning signboards of political parties. There has been accusation that the authority and some activists of the ruling party were damaging signboards of other Party. We have to find out what really happened concerning this accusation. No matter how long it would take, months or years. It is important to conduct a thorough investigation in order to insure integrity of the local authority. Whoever did it, members of the Cambodian People’s Party also included, must be held responsible for their actions. It was obviously a systematic act since all signboards in question had been defaced with spray paint. It is so suspicious.
I would like to make an appeal to whoever had done it to come forward and s/he would be rewarded as s/he would reveal the chieftain, who ordered for this action. Whoever that person behind may be, whether he is in the Cambodian People’s Party, will be held responsible. We doubt it very much that (these politicians) may also apply this trick. In that case, I must warn them that this will not be long in hiding. Take this case for consideration, HE Serei Kosal, who brought in the former Khmer Rouge’s force into hiding in Phnom Penh, made it no secret anymore when he joined the Cambodian People’s Party… My common sense tells me 100% that this case of defacing those signboards with spray paint were not at all actions of the Cambodian People’s Party. Why should we do that?
Elections for National Unity
I would recommend to all political parties to build their signboards firm standings or they may risk being blown down by wind that local authority would be held accountable. I also call on all parties to refrain from turning on their campaign VDO and audio equipments too loud that would disturb each other and/or other social events. There could be wedding parties and funerals or other religious rituals. I would in this case call for your assurance not to create disturbance to other events. There has been disintegration (from the opposition party) of a candidate for member of the National Assembly and other activists in the Muslim community in Kompot and Siem Reap provinces. If all goes according to plan, there will be disintegration of candidates for member of the National Assembly and certain leaders (the opposition party) in Kompong Cham and Kandal too.
These people are in fact exercising their political choices and please do not take this as political disturbances. Secondly, as far as the lawsuits filed by Jum Mei and former mother in law and second wife (of the opposition leader) are concerned, please do not consider them political disturbances since there are more cases filed before the court, insults in various places included. While some of them may go to court and some may go to the National Elections Committee, the incident should not be treated as political disturbance.
We must reason out and refrain from insulting one another. We should keep the election from breaking our nation, society, village and family. We should not have a fact that on one side of the village stands on one party and the other side of the village stand on a different one. In the past over 20 years, we have made a good example that after the elections, our people participated in the water festival’s boat race altogether.
Empty Promises
I have asked teachers who are standing on this side and they said that their salary is between Riel 500,000 and 600,000. The opposition is making a promise to give you one million, would you believe it or not? We will get there gradually. No Prime Minister in this world would want to give their officials less salary. I do not have the wish for one million but five. However, with current package of budget, we would not be able to do so. Well, it is not hard (for opposition politicians) to give empty promises anyway. For instance, in Thailand, (where they apply this policy of maximum pay) they have been facing with problem now. They bought rice at 15,000 Baht per metric ton but they could not sell them out because exporting them to low-price outside markets would require a lot of subsidy. It is a big loss of money.
Those people who also pay tax but do not grow rice, in face of this situation, took it to the street. They had no choice but brought the price of rice down from 15,000 Baht per metric ton to 12,000 Baht. When doing so, the rice farmers rose up against it. I think you can find similarity in what is being promised here in Cambodia. Please keep our promise within bound. We the Cambodian People’s Party, the ruling Party, should not make too much promises too. Take President Barak Obama of the United States of America into consideration, he did a lot of promises in his first term but he did not do that again in his second term.
I am reassure you that there is no Prime Minister in this world, who would want to pay less for their armed forces and officials. However, that should be deciding according to the national budget’s ability. If we were to do so now, to have our staff paid high like before, we could scale the number of our teaching staff to the same number we had in 1970s. We may do the same to medical staff in order to achieve this goal. Having done so, let me straighten it out with you, would it not be a risk for job loss for many people in arms, officials and teachers? Should we place and heighten land tax on farmers, for whom the Cambodian People’s Party does not bother to impose, as the opposition claimed they would do to cover this need for salary increment, we would have to face with the fact that we would have no money to build roads, bridges, water canals, schools, hospitals, medical tools, etc./.