Cambodian King appoints Hun Manet as new PM

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni on August 7 signed a Royal Decree appointing Dr. Hun Manet as the Prime Minister of Cambodia in the new tenure.
Dr. Hun Manet has been appointed as the Prime Minister of Cambodia in the new tenure (Photo: AP)
Dr. Hun Manet has been appointed as the Prime Minister of Cambodia in the new tenure (Photo: AP)

The Decree, which takes effect from the signing date, clarifies that the newly-appointed PM is responsible for deciding the organisation of the Cambodian Royal Government and seek for confidence from the National Assembly.

It was issued two days after the National Election Committee (NEC) of Cambodia announced the result of the seventh National Assembly election with the overwhelming victory of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) which won 120 out of the 125 seats in the next-tenure legislature.

According to Cambodia’s Constitution, after the new-tenure National Assembly is established, the Cambodian King will appoint the new PM to establish a new government basing on the proposal by the political party that hold the highest number of National Assembly seats.

Article 119 of the new Constitution of Cambodia stipulates that the proposal by the political party with the most seats at the National Assembly shall be copied for the President of the National Assembly. At the same time, it is required that the nominee to the position of the Prime Minister must be a member of the National Assembly and have only one nationality - the Cambodian.

According to the NEC’s announcement on August 5, in the National Assembly election on July 23, Hun Manet, a candidate of the ruling CPP, won the election in the Phnom Penh constituency where 12 parliamentary seats were allocated.

In the list of the candidates elected to the new Cambodian National Assembly arranged in the order of age from highest to lowest announced by the NEC, the 45-year-old new MP Hun Manet is at 111.

As scheduled, the seventh Cambodian National Assembly will convene its first sitting and hold the first session on August 21 and 22.

VNA