Cambodia: Cambodia’s King has officially appointed Mr. Hun Manet as the country’s next Prime Minister. The appointment comes in line with a transition plan formulated by Mr. Manet’s father, Mr. Hun Sen.
Mr. Sen, the current PM, announced that he would step down just three days after the election. In the royal decree, which followed a request from the Cambodian leader, King Norodom Sihamoni wrote that he “appoints Dr. Manet as the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia for the 7th mandate of the parliament.”
“The designated Prime Minister is tasked with forming a new government pending a vote of confidence at the National Assembly,” the decree added.
In a Facebook post, Mr. Manet thanked King Sihamoni and described the appointment as the “highest honor” of his life. The Prime Minister-in-waiting will be officially sworn in on August 22, following the vote.
The appointment follows a national election on July 23, at which Mr. Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) secured 120 out of the National Assembly’s 125 seats after the country’s main opposition party was barred from participating.
Mr. Sen is one of the world’s longest-serving leaders, having ruled the Southeast Asian nation of 16 million people for nearly four decades. The CPP leader also stated that he was resigning “to ensure stability in Cambodia.”
Mr. Sen added that he would retain leadership of the ruling party. The outgoing leader further confirmed Mr. Manet’s election as an MP for Phnom Penh, removing the remaining procedural obstacle to his ascent to power.
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