Province Officers Say More Resources Needed

Every day, Ratanakkiri hilltribe member Balang Win, 55, walks 4 km to his Banlung office. Hired by the National Assembly to work as a provincial assistant, he is too poor to afford even a bicycle.

And according to a two-day parliamentary seminar this week, he probably works harder for his $50 a month job than most Assembly par­lia­mentarians do for their positions, which pay $2,000 a month.

Like 40 other provincial parliamentary assistants across Cambo­dia, Balang Win says he barely man­ages to keep his office open so that villagers can pass on news, com­plaints and requests for assistance to their elected representatives in Phnom Penh.

“We have a lot of responsibilities, but we lack the means to do our work,” Balang Win said.

Congregated inside the luxurious Hotel Cambodiana, government officials, parliamentarians and local and foreign experts heard similar complaints from other Assem­bly provincial assistants and discus­sed ways to improve their provincial and municipal offices.

Funcinpec lawmaker Ly Thuch said during a panel discussion Mon­day that provincial assistants don’t have enough money or equip­ment to do their jobs properly. He added that many offices don’t have phones or fax machines and suggested that each should also be given a pickup truck.

“I think if each office got a pickup, they could go around listening to people’s problems and needs,” he said. “That would be great.”

CPP lawmaker Pen Panha, chair­man of the Assembly’s hu­man rights and complaints reception commission, said that from January to April 2005, his office re­ceived 86 complaints—most about land grabbing and housing disputes—but that only 18 were filed from provincial Assembly of­fices. The rest were filed after vil­lagers, at their own expense, came to Phnom Penh to demonstrate.

“Because we lack enough able staff and we lack other means, the vil­lagers brought their problems themselves here in the city,” he said.

Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay agreed about the importance of improving provincial of­fices but alleged that assistants were often recruited on the basis of nepo­tism or party affiliation.

“A number of officers lack enough skills to fulfill their roles,” he said. “And most of the staff are af­­filiated with the ruling party.”