Prime Minister Hun Sen warned provincial governors Wednesday to stay away from the fishing lots and lakes that the government opened to the public, and urged citizens to arrest any leader who tries to profit by selling the fishing areas to private businesses.
“This time, it is no laughing matter,” he told the governors.
His comments, delivered at the annual conference of the Ministry of Rural Development, included a call for a new department to be created within the Ministries of Rural Development to oversee the repair of rural roads destroyed by floods last year and further damaged by truck traffic.
Hun Sen reminded the governors that he granted the fishing lots to villagers, not to the commune chiefs and governors. “We gave the lakes to the villagers, so we have to let the people take action .”
In the past, Hun Sen urged the public to take the law into their own hands when they face corruption among their leaders. Wednesday he clarified his statement. “Just arrest them, don’t hit them,” he said.
The premier directed some of his wrath at the condition of rural roads. He said poor roads make life in the villages more expensive because they increase transportation costs for market goods.
He said road repairs can have dramatic effects on villager’s lives, pointing to the road from Anlong Veng to Siem Reap. Hun Sen said the road was so bad before it was repaired recently that travelers spent two days and close to 50,000 riel to make the journey, paying for food and an overnight stay along the way.
After repairs, the journey was shortened to about three hours and cost just 8,000 riel, he said.
