NEC chief dismisses repeated opposition demands to step down [NEC stands for National Election Cheater, not National Election Committee]

Tep Nitha, Secretary General of National Election Committee

PHNOM PENH, 20 June 2012 (Cambodia Herald) - National Election Committee Secretary General Tep Nitha dismissed Wednesday repeated demands for him to step down by Sam Rainsy Party spokesman Yim Sovan.

"The fact is that he may not be satisfied with the election results and that changing the NEC head is not the duty of the NEC itself," he said, noting that political parties were represented on the committee.

Under the law, NEC members are elected by the Ministry of Interior and approved by the National Assembly.

Tep Nitha also dismissed complaints from the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (Comfrel) that commune chiefs were seen near voting stations during commune elections earlier this month.

"Comfrel may want commune chiefs and other authorities to stay home during elections, but it forgets that such people have the same rights as other citizens," he said.

At a workshop earlier Wednesday, Comfrel President Thun Saray reported "unusual" incidents such as almost half the voters who failed to cast their ballots not being unable to find their names on lists or not having the right documents.

Thun Saray, also president of The Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (Adhoc), said Comfrel estimated voter turnout at 64.53 percent compared with the slightly higher NEC figure of 65.03 percent.

While the elections was not marred by violence or "seriously unusual" incidents, he said Comfrel had unearthed 3,000 unusual cases among 5,810 voting stations.

He also noted the absence of opposition party leader Sam Rainsy, believed to residing in France to escape a conviction for uprooting posts along the border with Vietnam.

Yim Sovan, the Sam Rainsy Party spokesman, accused the NEC of cheating in favor of the ruling Cambodian People's Party, urging local and foreign stakeholders to press for the removal of the secretary general.

Ou Chanrith, a lawmaker with the opposition Human Rights Party, said Comrel's evaluation of voting irregularities was conservative. "We saw a lot of issues as we were observing at voting stations," he said. "There were more than those found."