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Korean company, which announced to invest approximately $2 billion in Cambodia, giving the image that this will be foreign investment, finally will use the money of Khmer citizens to build a city. An economic analyst said that such kind of an investment game would not be accepted by any country except Cambodia.

“ At the Council for the Development of Cambodia, capital of approximately $2 billion had been announced, and this figure was used to be included in the development report, describing it as part of Cambodia’s economic growth, but finally this development company makes cake without flour, because it conducts the development of a sister city by starting to announce the sale of houses and land to Khmer citizens to get money to construct the buildings. Thus, it now advertises the sale of flats and of condominiums to start on 25 June, and those who visit the scheme of the sister city would sign contracts to buy such condominiums, and the company would later provide them. However, the condominiums do not yet exist; therefore, money has to be deposited so that the company uses the money to construct the condominiums.

“ The plan of the sister city looks to be real, as Khmer citizens assume that the Korean company really brings $2 billion to build a city in Cambodia; in fact, the plan is just empty of any capital, the real money is the money of domestic Khmer citizens. The announcement is for the sale of houses that do not yet exist to Khmer citizens, so they will deposit money that will be used to build houses for them. Hence, the company comes to develop Cambodia using Khmer land, collecting money from Khmer citizens, to build houses and then sell them to Khmer citizens. Such kind of development cannot be accepted by other countries, but for Cambodia it is made available.

“ According to the scheme and the model of the houses which look even more luxurious than buildings in America and France, it is announced that the sister city will cost $2 billion. However, the Korean investor does not bring $2 billion to construct the buildings, but they collect the money from Khmer citizens to construct the buildings, by selling houses that do not yet exist to Khmer citizens.

“ So far, Khmer businesspeople or local companies also announce the sale of houses, or to build houses for sale, but they make such announcements after the constructions are 70% completed; they do not sell only the plan and demand Khmer citizens or customers to deposit money, so as to use the money from their customers to build houses. Therefore, the Korean company that announces the construction of a sister city should at least invest half of the capital to build the city, so the construction of houses is 50% completed before it advertises the sale of houses and collects deposits from the citizens who are their customers.

“ However, it is funny that while not one flat has been constructed, the company announces the sale of flats to collect money; this is equal to making cake without flour, because it just shows the plan to the customers, and it announces the sale of houses and collects money. However, the government likes such kind of investors and allows them to enter the country, because they know how to go along with the way in which things flow in Cambodia, as long as Khmer officials and Khmer leaders get money or benefits from them.

“ As for Japanese investors, if they come to invest that means they really come, they really bring money to do business; therefore, Khmer officials do not benefit from them, therefore Japanese investors did not come to Cambodia. For that reason it is difficult for Cambodia to attract Japanese investors, because they do not want to make cake without flour, or to farm on Khmer citizens’ backs like Chinese and Korean investors do.

“ An economic analyst said that the Korean company which plans to constructs Camko City also opens a bank with the name Camko. The bank is located in [National Police Director-General] Hok Lundy’s villa on Norodom Boulevard. It is not known whether Hok Lundy holds shares of the bank, or whether he sold or rents the house to the Korean company, but Hok Lundy and the company are very close to each other.

“ The economic analyst said that in other countries, the buying and selling of immovable property is very carefully monitored for fear of money laundering through such transactions. Also in Cambodia, it is easy to use much money for money laundering. Consequently, it is also necessary to be cautious about the Camko Bank, because this bank is for collecting the money from the sale of immovable property in the Camko Sister City; different images can be used to conduct money laundering under the pretext of trade in immovable property.”