Officials are practically tripping over themselves to say sorry as the private fallout from a seemingly successful crackdown on alleged extortionists becomes even more public.

Phnom Penh Municipal Governor Kep Chuktema has become the second person to make an official apology to a fellow official as a result of a police operation that netted 81 alleged extortionists on January 5.

In a letter dated January 15 and obtained by the Post yesterday, Chuktema apologised to Minister of Interior Sar Kheng for castigating National Police officers involved in the operation, which accidentally led to the front door of Minister of Education, Youth and Sport Im Sethy.

“I have used bad words on competent police forces of the General-Commissariat of National Police at the Ministry of Interior who cracked down on cross-border criminals,” he humbly said in the letter “I very much regret commenting without more proper control and ask for a pardon from the leadership of the Ministry of Interior.”

And, as the contrite and repentant have done since the dawn of time, he promised to never let it happen again.

From now on, Chuktema said in the letter, the Municipal Hall will use its spokesman to provide all information to journalists.

The governor’s “my bad” comes on the heels of a military mea culpa one week ago on January 10, when four-star-General Neth Savoeun apologized to Sethy about the raid, saying his fence looked like the fence outside the house of the suspects.

“Therefore,” he said in the letter, “I ask Your Excellency to understand and forgive us.”

 

To contact the reporter on this story: Buth Reaksmey Kongkea at [email protected]