… Let me first of all extend my warmest thanks to our people who have come to this meeting to review the work that we have been fulfilling together. In today’s trip I have gone across quite a number of districts starting from Chbar Morn, Samraong Torng and Kong Pisey of Kompong Speu and later to Kandal Stoeung of Kandal Province. On December 18, 2003 I came to Rolaingken, and today we meet in Rokakoh – a break of 57 days. Though we now have our project started already, I would like to take this opportunity to express my regret for coming to this area rather late as I have so much to fulfil. Though we have a development project to the western part of Phnom Penh, still people on the southern side of Prek Thnaot seem to have benefited not much from it.
… Some canals were done and some were not because of our limited resources. We now have to put our efforts to build two lines of canal – one on the south and another on the north of Prek Thnaot canal, which connects the districts of Chbarmorn and Samraong Torng of Kompong Speu, Angsnuol of Kandal, and Dangkaor of Phnom Penh together. We were late in coming to this area also because of the weather condition. But late is better than never. People tell one another that water has come to the area through the canal, which is been hard to believe by some elderly people. It is indeed hard to believe because this never happens in their lives and the canal has to cut through rocks for which we had to use explosive to quarry them.
… I wish to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to the Ministry of Water Resources, the military engineering included, for the completion of the project and the wholehearted support and participation of our people in the area. I have an ambition to see a green belt around Phnom Penh, but with limited resources we have to fulfil it by steps. In ten or 20 years from now there will be many persons of greater potential than Hun Sen, but to wait for the potential ones to come, I am now having the right to make decision amd to do something here. From today to 2008, it is true that Hun Sen will be here wether there will or will not be a new Government. The Development Project for the Western Part of Phnom Penh has taken shape thanks to the contribution made by private and state contribution.
… I wish to see the project completed satisfactorily before the Khmer New Year so that a race of small boats could be organized to congratulate both the completion of the project and the celebration of the New Year event. Completing this project, like HE Senior Minister and Minister of Finance Keat Chhon said on radio with me, would introduce “a change in geographic and demographic condition.” I added one more to his remark “it is a change in geographic, demographic condition and income generating pattern.” In ten villages there are about 146 hectares of land, and with the provision of water, I would like to see our people grow anything they wish for supply to the market.
… In addition to water canals we also have roads and this is indeed the vision that was first put out in 1980s. In one of the CPP’s congress in 1985, in my report and in my book “Ten Years of Cambodia’s March” I have sounded out a vision of combining road communication with hydraulic projects – roads and water canals. We have now fulfilled it. It is true that roads and water resources have brought about changes in geographic and demographic condition as people could make new residences, new villages, transport facilities, all of which result in the creation of new sources for income generation. I am happy that we have come this far together but more need to be done beside building smaller canals to take water to farther places.
… With the achievement of water canals, what do I want from our people? Like elsewhere my request is that once there is water our people should increase their pattern of cultivation; we have to grow trees along the newly-built canals and roads. Care must be taken of them as they are our people’s property and not any particular person. As we have resolved water lacking problem today I have provided a school building of five classrooms to the Primary School of Srah Srang, to the Primary School of Prey Phchoeuk, to the Primary School of Angkor Chum, to the Primary School of Sophi and ten million Riel to the Angkor Chum pagoda as a contribution for its renovation cost.
… I wish to assure our people that they should have no doubt of my presence here as I will come to and fro very often at least till 2008 and if I were to get elected I would then go on coming because everyone is equal and has the right to be a nominee. That the new National Assembly is not functioning yet makes me a free Prime Minister as there were no questions put on the Government. There were at least seven or ten questions each week in the last term of the Royal Government to answer to. If they do not join the Government, it is tantamount to allowing the CPP to lead the Government alone and the current Royal Government is formed by the last legislative parliament, which is replaced by the new National Assembly already. But as the new National Assembly is not functioning, the Government is leading without its control. If they wish to pose questions they have to join us in creating a Government quickly.
… The possibility of having a Government of three parties is dead on January 19, 2004, when HM declared at the Phnom Penh International Airport that whether a Government of two or three parties is now depending on our people. CPP therefore is committed to the creation of a Government of two parties only and I would not accept otherwise. I met with an Under-Secretary of State of the United States of America and I posed a question about the said seven million dollars in aid and he said the bill was drafted by a minority and it has yet to be adopted. If it were to be adopted, it is still not clear as to how they make use of the money because in our Law on Political Party, no party could be permitted to have financial assistance from foreign sources at all…
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