It is indeed my pleasure and honor to come back to meet you all once again in the Autonomous Port of Sihanoukville after we met last year on May 1, which was at the end of the third legislature of the National Assembly … Today our meeting is taking place at the time that I am the Prime Minister of Cambodia in the fourth legislature of the National Assembly after the general elections in July 2008.
… On behalf of Samdech Chea Sim and Samdech Heng Sarin and leaders of the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), I would like to convey our sincere thanks to workers as well as their families for voting for CPP, which once again brings me here on the 123rd anniversary of the International Labor Day …
How come I did not choose to come here on May 1, which is tomorrow? Tomorrow will be the first day of sub-national council electoral campaigns – that is why I have to come here one day before. I would first of all like to express my sincere thanks and appreciation for the governing council of the Port as well as General Directors and workers for the efforts they made in the past aimed at making the Port an important entrance and exit point of trades in and out …
Achievements have been illustrated in the report by HE Tram Iv Toek, Minister of Transports and Public Works by which there is a clear contrast of increased volume of trades in and out through this Port … I have been here to put into use many facilities from stage 1 and stage 2 and I also came last year to put into official use the building through which we operate one window service and this year I am here for the last part of development plan with the loans we asked from the Government of Japan …
Today we use the loan of about US$ 24 million to equip the Port with lifting machines that will improve its loading and discharging capabilities and eight container carrier trucks … and I would say as I see they could use in transporting artilleries as well …
As it is now difficult to find ZIL 131, maybe to my mind, if there is a need, we can use these container carriers to load and transport our 130 and 152 mm artilleries. It can be used for as platform trucks in transporting tanks also …
That is if we have to go to war, but now they are being used for civilian purposes. We do not have a war to fight anymore and we do not go to war with anyone but our military officials have raised this issue as their concerns. One official raised this idea of using container carrier trucks to do the job and it is a good idea …
Now let’s get back to automation of a computerized control system which is known to be risk management area as well as the whole Port operation … We have spent 24 million dollars and the money is the loan from Japan …
Let me now say a few things in relations to the project of developing the Port … In between 1994 and 1995, if we were a bit slow the Port would have changed hands because of what is termed “investment” … But I have been firm on this that I do not let it out and I hinted that if you want to find financial help from Japan for developing the Port, it has to be kept free of private hands …
There had indeed been requests from everywhere for the Port development and everyone seems to have promised a budget of billions of US dollars and I just thought to myself if they have that much why do they want an old Port and not to build a new one. The Japanese money actually came to Phnom Penh already, but because there was private hands in the Port, the money had actually been transferred to the Vientiane airport development project …
After 20 years, Japan has come back and offered as loan again … We may ask why Japan did not give us loan earlier than that so that we can have this port developed … The story has been that Cambodian previous regimes owed Japan money and I can’t tell which regimes were there, … In 1992, Cambodian assistance has been recorded to be high but the country benefits nothing because those money pledges were for paying back Cambodian debts to IMF, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, etc.
As a member of the Supreme National Council (SNC) of Cambodia and Prime Minister of the State of Cambodia, I could see it most of the debt were recorded in the regime of Lon Nol … Officials suggested selling a plot of land to me so as to pay back the Cambodian debt to ADB, but I refused … Now the land has gone up sky high by an 18 floor building …
ADB allowed us to get loan because we had been forced to borrow money from a private bank to pay back its debt in advance – both in principal and in interest …
As in the case of Japan, why we could not get loan from 1994 and 1995? It was because Japan demands that we have to pay Japan back the money we owed in both principal and interest including fine. Japan provided Cambodia with goods and Cambodia had to market the goods to get the money pay for Japanese debt but the money has been used to help Cambodia … I would say an arrow that kills three birds …
It was 20 years after the liberation and six years after the Paris Peace Agreement that Cambodia was allowed the Japanese loan access …
Japan has loaned us Yen 4,142 millions or about 38 million US dollars for the first stage of Port development – the container port, to be specific, which cost about Yen 3,916 million …
For the second stage, we had a second batch of loan of about Yen 4,313 million or about 39 million US dollars from Japan which was signed on December 26, 2004 to extend further the container port and also to equip the Port with necessary machines for loading and discharging services … which we put into use officially today …
At the time that we meet here today to put into use this sophisticated equipments I would like to express on behalf of the Royal Government and people of Cambodia, through the Ambassador of Japan, our sincere appreciation and gratitude to the Government and people of Japan. More financial commitment on March 20, 2006, a sum of Yen 318 millions or about three million US dollars has been invested in studying an engineering plan for special economic development zone …
As of this year, we have signed another agreement on March 31, 2008 on a sum of Yen 3,651 million or about 36 million US dollars at the lowest interest rate of 0.01% per annum and we would be glad if Japan could loan us more of the kind.
I would be waiting to see, and I have talked to the Japanese Ambassador already, two things – firstly, timing of commencing the construction of the Special Economic Zone, because it has been signed into agreement since 2006 but has not yet started … I am so shy of talking about SEZ as it is too special to get off ground …
If we compare it with the project 1 and 2 in Steong Hav and Prey Nub, which used no state fund, but they have them done, except this one … That is why I said I will keep my eyes and ears on the timing of commencement of the development site … The second thing I am waiting to see is which one would attract the most investment … Let me remind you that the loan has to be paid back in principal and interest and fine would be applied if we fail to pay them back …
… I would warn the Port about the situation that it may have to operate the Port just to keep the Special Economic Zone going because we now have to start paying interest already and three million US dollars is the cost for mapping up the area. My objective is for the Port to operate for own development and not for the SEZ and also for the two to operate in complement to one another …
Because we have the Port right here, SEZ would benefit from that but if it has taken so long, perhaps other companies have already tapped the benefit elsewhere …
We may have to depend on the Japanese investments more than anyone else here but because the Japanese have gone mostly to Thailand with their investments, it maybe possible that we may leave the area for football.
This is the only place that we have to borrow money to develop SEZ but it has gone nowhere. Do not take me wrong that I criticize the Government of Japan but as a loan taker I wish to be clear – why so much time has been prolonged? We all want transparency and if we are afraid we would keep this situation going. I will not leave it at that because this is the Cambodian money and Cambodia has the duty to pay them back to the Japanese people. Please move thing fast and do not pay too much time on consultancy …
Despite the above developments, I think we need to do more in consideration of need for efficiently serving water transportation and in competing with service provided by other Ports in the region … We say the Port is the only deep sea access in the country but it is so shallow if we compare to others …
Some ships have to discharge goods to smaller ones to go to the Cambodian sea Port at Sihanoukville … What remains to be a major concern for us is to allow big ships traveling directly to our Ports without having to waste time loading and/or discharging goods because of inaccessibility for shallow sea lane …
We need capital to exhume sand from the sea bed to deepen the shipping lane and there are more than one way to skin the cat for example we have own capital, or from development partners and/or private investment partners … They may get permission to dredge sand to make the lane deeper and for doing that they may get something in return, etc. What I want to say is how to strengthen Cambodian economic development within the country not just our wish to compete with regional countries …
HE Tram Iv Toek has mentioned in his report already that all stakeholders in the Port need to be working together in unity – custom officers, police, military police, and the two armed forces will have to join forces in combating tax evasion while getting them to pay and making sound evaluation of real tax value …
I would warn the fact that there was this case of fixing a value 70% out of 100 so that they can share among themselves the rest. We must guarantee a smooth operation of the Port …
HE Cham Prasidh should also look into the fact that many requests for developing golf courses but it seems that not many have actually implemented them …
I would like you to check which company does not implement the project, we should take back what has been offered, and we keep the deposit fund too … because we have provided them with like a one or two-year validity already …
The ANCO clean water has come now in the city and it could provide up to 12,000 cubic meters of clean water per day and only 6000 cubic meters are consumed currently per day … The left-over half should be running down to other areas like the Port so a running water system should be laid down to cater water to every sectors … the Koh Puoh is also in need of clean water because no permission is granted for the Koh Puoh investors to drill for water …
Because today is the 123rd anniversary of the International Labor Day, in Phnom Penh there are 112 factories and enterprises that organize banquets for workers. I wish our workers make further efforts to overcome difficulties in time of world economic crisis and continue to collaborate within the labor law where understanding between workers/employers and employers/factories owners is needed because the two sides are partners that need each other in order to make progress …
The same is true for the Autonomous Sea Port of Sihanoukville where if the Port makes more money, workers will enjoy the benefit as well …
Workers and factories owners are partners in their developments … In Lenin’s New Economic Policy he said workers will have difficulties if the capitalists are not making any progress. I would analyze his statement that if the capitalists do not invest in factories, workers would not be able to find jobs or careers …
In the cause of coming electoral campaign which starts tomorrow, I would urge our armed forces to do a good job serving the National Election Committee at all levels while guaranteeing a free, fair and just environment for the sub-national election to take place free from violence. Before and after the election date, we have to provide safety in the whole country especially all CPP committees’ members must exercise patience and whatever is beyond authority’s jurisdiction, please leave it for the judicial system and refrain from going into conflict. This is my appeal after which I will be silent …
I also would like to appeal to all who use vehicles of all types to increase watchfulness in operating their means of transports because accidents caused by traffic are grisly and higher death rate everyday …
We all have to respect traffic rules and no matter who you are you have to abide by law … It is now also time that we have to take actions against those vehicles with military or police number licenses … they should replace them or they will get fined and their vehicles would be confiscated for state property …
I also urge those driving important persons’ vehicles to drive within permitted speed … and siren car should have certain rule to follow because the sound at a certain level would be disturbing patients in hospital or elderly who has insomnia …/.
