Hun Manet, a senior military official and eldest son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, took to Facebook this weekend to defend himself from unnamed detractors who, he said, had accused him of spending millions of dollars buying Cambodian expatriates’ support during a youth recruitment drive in Europe.

In his post, Manet denied the accusation – which he did not attribute – that he spent up to $6 million paying Cambodian youth abroad €300 (about $330) each to secure their loyalty to his father’s ruling Cambodian People’s Party.

He insisted that the allegation “affects the dignity and honour of thousands of Cambodian expatriates in Europe, as well as the system of law in France, which does not allow people to travel with millions of US dollars”.

Manet, who chairs the Overseas Youth Working Group, recently visited several European countries as part of a CPP recruitment drive.

Manet could not be reached yesterday, but CPP spokesman Sok Eysan said he suspected the allegations emerged from opposition supporters abroad.

Opposition spokesman Yem Ponharith said he had no knowledge of the accusations.