Following last month’s lopsided elections, Cambodia’s parliament on Tuesday selected Hun Sen’s eldest son as the country’s new prime minister, completing a dynastic transfer of power.
All but five seats in the lower house were won by Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) in the July election, which was widely criticized as a fraud because the main opposition party was not allowed to participate.
Heng Samrin, the legislator who presided over the meeting, said that Hun Manet, 45, had been chosen by a unanimous vote of the National Assembly in Phnom Penh on Tuesday.
After the vote, Hun Manet told lawmakers: “Today is a historic day for Cambodia”.
Days after the July election, Hun Sen one of the world’s longest-serving leaders announced he was stepping down and handing power to Hun Manet after nearly four decades of iron-fisted rule.
The largely ceremonial Cambodian king convened parliament on Monday, paving the way for lawmakers to elect four-star general Hun Manet, as the country’s new leader on Tuesday.
Hun Manet said his government would prioritise boosting the economy, creating a “prosperous nation,” increasing livelihoods and climate change adaptation.
Hun Manet’s new government includes a number of his relatives and several children of Hun Sen’s allies in top jobs.
Hun Many, the youngest son of Hun Sen, will have the position of minister of the civil service, and Neth Savoeun, the influential national police head at the moment, would hold the position of deputy prime minister.
A draft list of the future cabinet members obtained by AFP indicates that the sons of the present interior and defense ministers will take over their dads’ positions.
Hun Sen helped modernize a nation that had been devastated by civil war and genocide when he came to power in 1985, but detractors claim his leadership has also been characterized by environmental degradation, pervasive corruption, and the eradication of practically all political opposition.
The United States, United Nations and European Union have condemned last month’s polls as neither free nor fair.
Hun Manet rejected those allegations hailing the vote as a “transparent election”.
Despite being educated in Britain and the United States, Hun Manet has shown few signs he will follow a more liberal path than his father.
A member of the ruling party’s powerful permanent committee, he has been the Royal Cambodian Army’s commander since 2018.
Hun Manet has also met some world leaders, including President Xi Jinping of China, Cambodia’s main ally and a significant benefactor.
