Some 50 villagers from Prek Takong 1 gathered again at the Ministry of Interior on Monday to follow up their petition filed last month to demand the removal of their village chief who has ignored drug and online gambling issues in the village. The residents of Prek Takong also want the higher authority to open an investigation on the village chief. 

The residents of Prek Takong village said while the investigation on the village chief has not even started, the Chak Angre Leu commune has instead asked the villagers to put their thumbprint to support Prek Takong village chief.

Villagers say their chief’s failure to shut down online gambling venues has fueled crime, leading to thefts and burglaries that have incurred losses for the people who have had their money and valuables stolen. Despite informing the village head about it, there has been no effective solution.

Ouk Nary, 52, a Prek Takong 1 resident, told CamboJA News that when the villagers went to the Ministry of Interior to follow up on their petition a month ago, they were told that the removal of the head was “not under the ministry’s jurisdiction, but the commune council’s”. 

However, Nary said, the ministry ordered the commune council to conduct an investigation on the matter, but there is no outcome to date. In that time, there was a “systematic plan” to obtain their consent to apparently “retain the village head”.

“The ministry asked [the commune to investigate] if the petition submitted by the residents regarding the village chief was correct or not, but the commune team collected residents’ thumbprints during administration hours to support the village head again,” Nary said.

The residents collectively decided to submit a letter to request the removal of the village head because neither small nor big problems in the village were resolved by him or the commune head despite being informed.

Another resident, Mao Lunheng said when residents reported security issues in the village, the head did not appear to bring their concerns to the higher authorities. Even after the residents gave their thumbprint to remove the head, his attitude did not “soften” to help solve the problems in the village.

At the same time, the commune working group came to the village to warn residents, who participated in the petition to remove the village head, to not share the information with other residents.

“The sangkat [commune] head and sangkat working group came over to question us, which made us all afraid. When the residents asked the village head for help, he refused but asked us to report to the higher authorities. We do not want a village head who treats us like that,” Lunheng said. 

This is the fourth time Prek Takong 1 villagers gathered at the Interior Ministry to follow up on their petition to seek the ministry’s intervention, but were again told that they have no authority to solve the problem, suggesting that they continue to request Phnom Penh City Hall’s intervention. 

“It seems like the ministry has not helped us to the best of its ability. The ministry said it does not have the jurisdiction to resolve the issue for us, and to go to the Phnom Penh Municipal Hall. We feel sad that the ministry is not helping us,” Lunheng said.

Meanwhile, the person in question, Prek Takong village chief Long Heun, said he has no comment on the petition. He claimed that he has “done his best” to serve the villagers but the resolution of the problem in the village is “beyond his control”. He said he has served the village for more than 17 years and put in the effort to show his concern to the residents, but some still disliked him. 

“Let the higher authorities solve this issue. The responsibility of the village chief is limited [particularly in relation to] drug or online games. I have already informed the police but it continues to occur even with the police combating it,” Heun told CamboJA News.

Interior Ministry spokesperson Touch Sokhak said they cannot directly intervene in the removal of a village chief, as that decision is made by the commune council.

“The village chief has no power like the police,” he said, adding that it is wrong for the villagers to say that the village chief does not combat crime. The village chief’s job is not to fight crime.

A village chief represents the residents and is in charge of informing the commune authority, and who brings the information back from the commune to the people.

“It would be opposite of the law [if he fought crime],” Sokhak told CamboJA News.

Confirming that the ministry has received the petition from villagers, he said they have transferred the case to the Phnom Penh City Hall to handle. He urged the residents to exercise their right responsibly according to the law because they cannot request for the village head’s removal when there are residents who supported the chief.

“We can’t decide without following the due process of the sub-national level. So, the Phnom Penh authority will continue the process with the commune,” Sokhak said.

Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights-based LICADHO, reminded that the government’s safe village-commune policy is to safeguard villagers’ safety and security, therefore the village head and relevant authorities should solve the people’s problems, to ensure the citizens get what they seek.

He said even though the village head only has administrative powers, he can still report the issue to higher authorities. He opined that the village head should be solving problems, not trying “to win over the citizens”.

“The most important thing is to take measures to ensure security and order for the citizens,” Sam Ath said.