The National Assembly has called on the Interior Ministry to “take action” against former opposition deputy Eng Chhay Eang after he appeared to send a condolence letter to a grieving family using the parliamentary letterhead.
In a letter circulated yesterday, National Assembly Secretary-General Leng Peng Long asked Interior Minister Sar Kheng to “take action” against an unnamed former Cambodia National Rescue Party lawmaker “who stole the National Assembly logo to use on other documents”.
A letter posted from Chhay Eang’s Facebook account last Wednesday featured the letterhead in question. It was addressed to the family of Vietnam border critic Sean Pengse, who passed away the day before.
Chhay Eang was one of 55 CNRP lawmakers stripped of their National Assembly seats following the widely condemned dissolution of the main opposition party at the Supreme Court in November.
The National Assembly letter said CNRP lawmakers “have fully lost their rights and membership” at the assembly, and that the act causes “confusion”.
Peng Long confirmed the lawmaker he referred to was Chhay Eang, who could not be reached late yesterday. Peng Long also called on the ministry to assess whether other former politicians now banned from politics had “violated the law”.
Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak said such violations could carry a two- to five-year prison term.
“If there is a complaint we will take action, but we do not know what happened yet,” he said.
