An outburst quickly turned into apology in a Siem Reap constituency where a deputy commune chief was not elevated to run for the chief position in the June local elections.
On January 21, the CPP in Siem Reap city’s Chreav commune announced commune council candidates at an event attended by about 50 people, a widely circulated video from the event shows.
But around half a dozen people are displeased with the announcement of Kob Ron as candidate for the chief’s position, with Kong Boeb, the sitting deputy chief, completely sidelined from the party’s candidate list.
Residents can be heard praising Boeb’s work in the commune to build local infrastructure and help people in need. They can be heard denying claims alleging that Boeb was sympathetic to the opposition. Boeb Dara, Boeb’s son, was part of the outburst and can be seen shouting at CPP officials at the event.
Siem Reap governor Tea Seiha did want to comment on the incident and said it was an internal party matter and should not affect constituents in the commune.
“It’s a party matter, we haven’t officially announced yet. Normally, it’s a decision from the Cambodian People’s Party. However, this matter is still under consideration,” he said.
“It is not a matter of the people, this is a matter of the CPP. This is an internal matter of the CPP.”
VOD could not reach Dara or Boeb, but the father posted an apology video on his Facebook account on Wednesday about his son’s protest. The apology was directed at Prime Minister Hun Sen, governor Seiha and members of the party.
“I apologize on behalf of my son for what he did wrong,” Boeb wrote on Facebook.
Despite his outburst at the event, Dara also apologizes for his comments in the same video.
“I made a mistake where I affected the convention on that day because I was young and angry. It was an unintentional mistake,” he said.
