The National Assembly will meet on Thursday to discuss and adopt an amendment to the law on municipal, provincial, town and district council elections in order to improve their efficiency, according to a senior National Assembly official.

Chheang Vun, the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation, Information and Media Commission chairman, told reporters after a meeting of the Permanent Committee on Monday that National Assembly members plan to meet on Thursday to adopt the amendment.

He said the amendment was an initiative of 92 lawmakers who wanted to increase municipal, provincial, town, district and council seats in the National Assembly in order to improve their efficiency and their ability to solve problems at a local level.

“We’ve decided to organise a meeting on Thursday [January 3]. These amendments aim to give the sub-national administrations enough ability to stay close to the people."

“We’ve seen a lack of municipal, provincial, town, district and council members, so we’ve increased their seats so that officials can serve the people,” he said.

He stressed that the law’s amendment is a reform aiming to fill up gaps left by previous laws, adding that there are still more laws requiring amending in order to respond to the demands of society and the government.

“We still have more laws requiring amendment and they will come one after another. At each early National Assembly’s mandate we usually look at the demands of society and social development,” he said.

Political analyst Meas Nee stated that the amendments will increase the number of seats on sub-national administrations, something he believes is a waste of the national budget.

“It is a waste of the national budget by just delegating more power to sub-national administrations. Some officials in these administrations have not helped to serve the people, but in fact, they cause problems for the people instead,” he said.