Sam Rainsy's letter published in The Phnom Penh Post, January 26, 2009January 26, 2009
Letter to The Phnom Penh Post
Dear Editor,
In the front-page article "SRP calls for govt bailout" in the January 19 edition of The Phnom Penh Post, you wrote « opposition leader Sam Rainsy has called on the government to set aside a US$500 million economic stimulus package to offset the local effects of the world financial slump, claiming "tens of thousands" of Cambodian jobs have been lost to the global crisis ». This article correctly reflects the spirit of my January 16 letter to Prime Minister Hun Sen drawing his attention to Cambodia's vulnerability in the face of the ongoing world financial crisis and to the seriousness of its worsening impact on our economy, the unprecedented fall in agricultural prices literally strangling our farmers, massive job destruction in the hitherto-growing nonagricultural sectors (garment, construction, tourism), and the collapse of the property market.
The suggested US$500 million stimulus package would be the first emergency measure designed to alleviate the fallout from the world crisis and to prevent economic, social and political upheavals with incalculable consequences for Cambodia's stability and long-term development.
However, in the above mentioned article, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith is reported as saying there is no need for such a package because the government has already reserved funds for unforeseen circumstances, as it has been doing every year in the annual state budget. He is quoted as saying: "We have a reserve budget, not only for the global economic crisis but also for other disasters such as floods, and so forth", although he reportedly could not remember the exact amount set aside in 2009.
What the government has actually set aside for the fiscal year 2009 as "unplanned expenditures" -- US$144 million compared with US$132 million for 2008 -- is not adequate to cope with the deteriorating situation. Firstly, in the amount being far too little, and more importantly, in the concept, because the package must be thoroughly planned in order to produce its expected effects. For this purpose, we must forget "floods" and similar contingencies for a while, and concentrate on macroeconomics, fiscal policy, monetary policy, job creation, full-employment equilibrium, aggregate demand, deficit spending, multiplier effect and other elements of Keynesian economic theory.
I would like to respond also to National Assembly Vice President Nguon Nhel who is quoted, in the January 18 edition of Khmer-language newspaper Rasmei Kampuchea, as saying the government does not need to follow my recommendation related to the world economic crisis because it has already taken "measures against inflation". Apparently, Mr Nguon Nhel does not realize that the problem is no longer inflation but deflation and recession.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
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Click here to read the Rasmei Kampuchea article quoting Nguon Nhel about "measures against inflation".
Click here to read Sam Rainsy's response in Khmer published by the Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper.
In the front-page article "SRP calls for govt bailout" in the January 19 edition of The Phnom Penh Post, you wrote « opposition leader Sam Rainsy has called on the government to set aside a US$500 million economic stimulus package to offset the local effects of the world financial slump, claiming "tens of thousands" of Cambodian jobs have been lost to the global crisis ». This article correctly reflects the spirit of my January 16 letter to Prime Minister Hun Sen drawing his attention to Cambodia's vulnerability in the face of the ongoing world financial crisis and to the seriousness of its worsening impact on our economy, the unprecedented fall in agricultural prices literally strangling our farmers, massive job destruction in the hitherto-growing nonagricultural sectors (garment, construction, tourism), and the collapse of the property market.
The suggested US$500 million stimulus package would be the first emergency measure designed to alleviate the fallout from the world crisis and to prevent economic, social and political upheavals with incalculable consequences for Cambodia's stability and long-term development.
However, in the above mentioned article, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith is reported as saying there is no need for such a package because the government has already reserved funds for unforeseen circumstances, as it has been doing every year in the annual state budget. He is quoted as saying: "We have a reserve budget, not only for the global economic crisis but also for other disasters such as floods, and so forth", although he reportedly could not remember the exact amount set aside in 2009.
What the government has actually set aside for the fiscal year 2009 as "unplanned expenditures" -- US$144 million compared with US$132 million for 2008 -- is not adequate to cope with the deteriorating situation. Firstly, in the amount being far too little, and more importantly, in the concept, because the package must be thoroughly planned in order to produce its expected effects. For this purpose, we must forget "floods" and similar contingencies for a while, and concentrate on macroeconomics, fiscal policy, monetary policy, job creation, full-employment equilibrium, aggregate demand, deficit spending, multiplier effect and other elements of Keynesian economic theory.
I would like to respond also to National Assembly Vice President Nguon Nhel who is quoted, in the January 18 edition of Khmer-language newspaper Rasmei Kampuchea, as saying the government does not need to follow my recommendation related to the world economic crisis because it has already taken "measures against inflation". Apparently, Mr Nguon Nhel does not realize that the problem is no longer inflation but deflation and recession.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
-----
Click here to read the Rasmei Kampuchea article quoting Nguon Nhel about "measures against inflation".
Click here to read Sam Rainsy's response in Khmer published by the Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper.
10 comments:
Don't pay too much attention to Mr Nguol Gnel''s remarks. He busy GAMBLING " Sap Sam". He is addicting to it like MR Luy Lay Sreng and other high ranking officials who don't know how to use their easy money.
Mr Sam Rainsy is right about the budget provisions. It would be interesting to fnd out how he came up with the $500 m figure, and how he is sure that the amount would be enough.
Kuoy Pichet
Does Sam Rainsy just turn on CNN and writes down whatever he sees and starts to say it like he thinks it all up? It seems like it. First, we need change, a clear plagiarism from Obama's campaign and now stimulus package? Does this Sam Rainsy guy even think on his own? It doesn't seem like it. It seems he just looks around for whatever big name politicians in America does and he would try to copy. Sam Rainsy is like the politician version of those Cambodian rappers who copy American music like Dr. Dre's and put Khmer words to the song and think it's hot. It's not and it sounds very unoriginal and STUPID to be exact.
Don't listen to Ah Fake (Scam Rainxy). We don't need to set aside anything. What we need is to deport and ban Pouk Ah Scam Rainxy and his potato digger from Cambodia to keep them from sabotaging on our economy.
CPP's top leaders are not way to understand the different between inflation and deflation...is this called "economic government"...
Stupid,....
My beloved 7:28PM!
Are you confidently sure that CPP's top leaders are stupid? We all acknowledgeably knew that they had al least one PhD or more, especially Samdech Hun SenVarman just recently received PhD in economic. In addition, one day they will all publicly receive PhD in corruption. I am unearthly speechless!
The government can't bail out anything. If there's some surplus, it's for Hun Sen to feed his own doggy bodyguards and to buy off the gold star generals whom he recently promoted.
10:17 PM , Agree - agree ..
Me too , Agree Agree and agree
That is good. We don't want PM bodyguard to work on an empty stomach. Otherwise they can't do their job correctly.
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