Human Resource Grows Up
Today, I have a great pleasure to join with you in this graduation and diploma presenting ceremony of the Puthisastra University. I am proud to note that our human resource is growing up day after day. This is possible because of our joint efforts. Early this week I presided over the graduation and diploma presenting ceremony of the Panha Chiet University. As for today, we are presenting diplomas for three levels of 1,694 graduates – undergraduate, bachelor and master degrees. The University’s board director made a report about progress realized in the past, encompassing also humanitarian actions by the University.
I hope that we will continue these actions and make further efforts to improve quality of tertiary education. We will do them all together from primary, secondary to tertiary levels. As you knew already, yesterday I had a meeting with grade-A high school graduates, accompanied by their families. It was an event to offer encouragement for more than 50,000 graduates, or 62% of exams takers. This is a better achievement compared to 40% in the first year of reform. I wish to express my sincere thanks to the Puthisastra University for the efforts it makes in training our students here. I thank the University for allocating scholarships to me, and that I have provided to students in need.
Learning More to Strengthen Capacity
I would like to take this opportune moment to express my sincere thanks for graduates who received diplomas today. I hope that all of you will make use of your gained knowledge to serve in whatever you wanted to. However, I am calling on all of you to make further efforts to continue your study so to strengthen your capacity. I have advised very often that things evolve fast and fundamentally and so does technology. Nothing in this world stays idle. The world encounters more and more challenging issues – contagious diseases, climate change, and terrorism are serious concerns. Heads of states and governments or Minister of Foreign Affairs are meeting now in New York drafting declaration on those matters.
I have a strong hope that graduates who have not yet found a job will seek for one because there are more jobs available now in the market. According to the report by the University’s governing board, some 81% of graduates from the University got jobs. I hope the remaining number would find ones. I am taking this opportune moment to express, together with families of graduates, my congratulations and appreciation for the efforts they personally made as well as those of their parents, grandparents, superintendents, brothers and sisters, spouses.
Holding on a Verbal Battle
I should not talk much as things calm down a bit since Monday. There was a bit of an exchange of fire from Monday through to Tuesday. As a verbal battle seems to be in place now, there is no need to make any further comments. I will keep watch throughout the period that Cambodians are celebrating Projum Ben days to see if anyone would break up the verbal battle. I wanted a calm environment for the whole Projum Ben days. We will see if the verbal battle holds. I do not talk politics today and I did not since yesterday. It is good. Let us celebrate the Projum Ben days and it is already day six of the event today.
The 23-September Cabinet Meeting to Endorse Treaty of Climate Change
I have two meetings to do this afternoon – Minister of National Defence from Laos and Minister of Information from Vietnam […] Tomorrow morning, there will be this agenda in the Cabinet meeting to endorse process to seek legislative ratification what is going to be the treaty on climate change signed in Paris. The Secretary General of the United Nations, while meeting in Vientiane, made insisting request that Cambodia ratifies the treaty. I told him it is just a matter of internal procedure. Now we have our Foreign Minister in New York, and on 24 September, he will tell the world that Cambodia is in its process of ratifying the treaty. The cabinet meeting will go through it before sending to the legislative body seeking a ratification. The treaty will be in force when there are supports from a certain number of countries.
In the G20 summit in China’s Hangzhou, the Chinese President and the US President handed this document to the Secretary General of the United Nations. He also wanted Cambodia’s participation in the framework of supporting the initiative. HM the King of Cambodia also went for a conference in Paris. The Cabinet meeting tomorrow will adopt the document and notify the Minister of Foreign Affairs who is now in New York to inform the world organization of Cambodia’s internal procedural preparation before the legislative assemblies – National Assembly and the Senate, will ratify […]
Registering for Voting Right
… Two more things that I need to talk about, though. Firstly, I am appealing to the Cambodian people to continue to register for their voting rights. No matter how busy we may be, we should not neglect our right to vote. The National Election Committee (NEC), political parties, etc. have all appealed to people to register for voting right. Please keep going and registering wherever you may like to. Take for instance I do not register in Phnom Penh but in Takhmao, in Kandal, because it is my constituency. People from rural areas (and work in Phnom Penh) may want to register in any registration offices closer to their workplaces. People may also want to register in their native places. It is absolutely the right of every individual. On behalf of the Royal Government, I am calling on our people who have not registered yet, those working in foreign countries also included, to go and do so […]
Forecast of Water Level in the Mekong Basin
I hope that seasonal flooding this year does not seem to rise high. This morning we had a forecast that water of the Mekong River may rise a little bit. In Stoeng Treng province, the water level will stay at eight meters, though. It was 9.50 meters when I was in Mondulkiri and I had hoped it would rise to ten meters. It was just a hope. I called to the provincial governor and he told me the level of water has instead dropped. I am glad to see though that water has filled our lakes and reservoirs already because the seasonal Mekong flood did reach 9.5 meters. According to our weather forecast, it seems there could instead be flood from rain […]
One other matter that is clearly going to happen is that we will organize the water festival’s boat race. We are committed to do that. If we could not organize boat race for longer boats, we may do one for shorter ones. It would be impossible to transport longer boats to the racing event […]
Rice Market; Dry before Selling
Secondly, it is an issue relating to market for rice. In the last few days, we have intervened to save price of rice. However, that is not sufficient and requires collaboration and understanding from our rice farmers who have rice to sell. The difficulty here is that in one instance, our people harvested tens of thousands of rice at the time that our silo has a capacity to dry only 1,000 tons of rice per day. Well I have called on our people to grow rice with a statement ‘harvesting rice in wet condition is better than there is nothing to harvest.” This instruction is applicable in time of drought in 1994. I made this statement in the commune of Puthsar, Bati district, Takeo province, in 1994. Farmers then dare not cultivate short-term rice because they may have to harvest in the rainy season. I made the statement and even wrote song to encourage them to do otherwise.
We have brought about peace everywhere, we dug canals for people, and in drought time, we offered assistance to pump water for our farmers. However, people sell wet rice. If they do not sell them in time, rice may germinate. People nowadays do not harvest with sickles but by harvesting machines. Harvested rice came in big amount all at once but our drying capacity could not handle that. I am calling on all farmers, if they can, to dry their rice first before selling. It is hard though to dry rice in rainy season. However, if you can, please do. You can sell at a better price when the rice market goes up […]
Also in this point, I thank Minister, Secretary of State, officials, the armed forces, and traders for purchasing rice from our farmers. However, I am calling on them to take rice home or give to whom they planned to, rather than leaving them at the milling place. The question here is not that we do not have money to purchase rice but no silo to dry it. If you buy rice and leave it with the millers, the situation will be the same. Whoever purchase rice at this moment must transport it to your home or milling place. If you buy from farmers and leave it with them, the issue is still unresolved. Just be clear that this is not a problem of having no money to purchase rice […]
Anyway, I continue to call on our people to help farmers. Cambodian rice is good and tasty. I hope that we will consume our own rice. If each family has the ability to purchase rice and store it, they may do so but not leave them at Battambang, Banteay Meanjei or Pursat, but ship it homes or to whom they wish. The issue here is to take rice away to save it from germinating […]
… I am calling on bus services not to jack up price during the Projum Ben festival period. I am calling on drivers to exercise vigilance and make sure their driving is safe. I anticipate no traffic accident in this festive time … Please respect the traffic rules./.
