PHNOM PENH: Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Cambodian Army, Lieutenant General Hun Manet, stated that due to sufficient human resources working as the main driving force of the nation, Cambodia has been able to stand strong, maintain stability and complete peace. He said this has ensured the lives of the people and further progress that should not have a populist politician that humiliates the Cambodian human resources, which he considered an attack on the efforts of teachers, parents and guardians, and an insult to the Cambodian nation.

Speaking at the Inauguration Ceremony of Hun Sen Prey Toteung High School in Kampong Cham Province on Thursday, Lieutenant General Hun Manet noted the many developments in the field of education in Cambodia, including many achievements in the education sector, are due to the efforts of the Royal Government, authorities at all levels, philanthropists, and what especially determines the main success of the education sector is the character of students, parents and teachers. He added that any disgrace to Cambodia's human resources by populist politicians would not only attack individuals, it would also undermine the efforts of teachers, parents, guardians and the nation as a whole.

He said that Cambodia can be self-sufficient in all areas, as reflected in the country’s high economic growth, especially before the Covid-19 outbreak, which is an achievement that should be attributed to the human resources produced by teachers. He added that the nation’s human resources are both trained in Cambodia and abroad and have joined all national and sub-national institutions as well as the private sector and other national or international organizations. He stressed that any disrespect to Cambodian human resources by populist politicians is an attack on the efforts of teachers and parents who have worked hard, and also an insult to the Cambodian nation.

Although Hun Manet did not state any specific names regarding which populist politician he may be speaking of, recently the most frequent attacker on Cambodia's education and human resources was Sam Rainsy.

In October 2015, Sam Rainsy, the former president of the Cambodian National Rescue Party, attacked the value of Cambodian diplomas and called them worthless. Immediately after, the Education Minister Hang Chuon Naron, responded by saying the attack was meaningless and useless. He added that the disregard for education in Cambodia by Sam Rainsy was because his family had never studied in Cambodia and Sam Rainsy himself did not sure how to write Khmer well.

Recently, Sam Rainsy made comments about the degrees that Cambodian students can receive from the West Point Military Academy in the US, as an attack directed at Hun Manet, who is a graduate of the academy, saying that students can only receive an honorary degree or a second-class diploma at these foreign schools. This baseless allegation was eventually dismissed by the West Point Academy themselves, who said there are no differences in the degrees received by students from the US or abroad, all graduates receive the same level of education degree accreditation.