CPP’s Win-Win policy turns out to be a Lose-Lose proposition for defectors

SRP defectors disappointed by false promises from the CPP

20 January 2011
By Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post
Translated from Khmer by Soy

CPP's

WIN-WIN

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LOSE-LOSE

Phnom Penh – 3 SRP defectors who left to join the CPP have expressed their disappointment against the CPP which promised to give them proper government position, but instead, the trio did not receive anything.

Chim Rithisak, the deputy commune chief for Tuol Tompung 2 commune and former SRP party member, and two of his colleagues, Sam Rithy and Pich Kim Khon, told the Phnom Penh Post on Wednesday that they defected to join the CPP in 2007 through the intervention of two high-ranking CPP officials: Chea Chamroeun, currently a member of Parliament, and Chak Leng, the current secretary of state at the Council of Ministers.

The trio indicated that Chak Leng and Chea Chamroeun, who were responsible for local [party] strengthening in Koh Dach commune, Mouk Kampoul district, Kandal province, promised them proper government positions and they pushed the trio to influence other SRP party members to defect to the CPP with them. The trio added that after they defected to the CPP, they worked to influence numerous other SRP party members and activists to defect to the CPP. They indicated that more than 1,000 SRP party members defected to the CPP.

Chim Rithisak said: “The pushed me to exert influence with SRP party members so they defect to the CPP. H.E. Chak Leng and H.E. Chea Chamroeun promised to provide me with proper [government] position.”

Chim Rithisak added: “I influenced 1,241 SRP party members to defect to the CPP. The Koh Dach commune is a hotbed zone because the CPP lost to the SRP during 3 consecutive mandates already, but when I defected to the CPP, it won the commune election and the national election.”

The three defectors said that the reason they did not receive [government] position was because of their action to influence SRP party members did not filter all the way up to Hun Xen, and if Hun Xen were to know about their actions, he will provide them with proper [government] position.

Chim Rithisak said: “To Samdach [Hun Xen], if somebody do a good job at the local level, he will think of these people.” “I am talking like this only for individual problem, I am not talking about party problems. The party is doing good. I ask Samdach [Hun Xen] to help our group also so that we may feed our children and wives.”

The trio added that the reason they defected to the CPP was because they saw the CPP’s win-win policy as being good, whereas the SRP’s policy is not moving forward.

Ky Vandara, the interim SRP Secretary-general, indicated that the CPP always made false promises to SRP party members and that it is not just this trio who are deceived by the CPP’s promise, in fact, there are other SRP members who defected the party, only to be met by the CPP’s deception.

Ky Vandara added: “The CPP always promised to give out this and that, but the majority of the defectors still do not receive any position yet. Only a small number of defectors received the positions they were promised, but their positions are not real positions. They don’t have any power.”

Ky Vandara added that the SRP always increases the number of votes and its does not care about the attacks launched by the defectors, nor does it pay attention to the defections. He said that this is the political rights of the party members.

CPP Chak Leng and Chea Chamroeun, who were accused of not respecting their promises made to the defectors, could not be reached to obtain their clarifications as of Wednesday.

It should be noted that since prior to the election, thousands of SRP party members have defected to join the ruling party until now. Prior to the July 2008 election, 37 SRP party members defected, some received the position of secretary of state or under-secretary of state in the current 4th mandate government.