The police chief in Kralanh district, Siem Reap province, has denied that Ta An Commune Police Chief Thla Sengkea has been suspended from his work for having complained about his superiors on Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook for not promoting him.

Chi Bengchon, Kralanh district police chief, said Sengkea had not been suspended from his work and claimed that he lied about not receiving a promotion for an extended period of time.

“Sengkea has apologised for his mistake and for lying . . . he apologised and he said he wrote it on Samdech [Hun Sen’s] Facebook,” Bengchon said.

In fact, according to Bengchon, Sengkea became a police officer in 1990 and in 1994 abandoned his work. Then on December 29, 2006, he applied to return to the police force and was soon promoted to staff sergeant, later going on to become deputy commune police chief in 2012 and eventually police chief.

“He was also just promoted to sub lieutenant on April 11, 2018 . . . he wrote on [Hun Sen’s] Facebook hoping that [Hun Sen] would see it and promote him,” Bengchon said.

“He sees other police officers being promoted to the rank of captain . . . but he is in no position to wear this rank. What he was saying was not true . . . He lied to [Hun Sen] . . . and he accepted he was properly promoted.”

Sengkea had written on Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook page that “I would like to ask Samdech [Hun Sen] to grant me a promotion. I have worked for a very long time without a promotion as the commune police chief in Siem reap province…while others are becoming captain. Please help Samdech.”