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Sad news. Rich people will have to 'work' harder to become oknha now. The good news is that all this extra money is going to be well spent.

Cost of gaining ‘Oknha’ title soars
Anyone hoping to be bestowed with the title of “Oknha” must now contribute at least $500,000 to the government, five times more than was previously required, Prime Minister HE has ruled.

The new sub-decree signed on March 20 replaces an earlier one from April 1994, which said wealthy benefactors who gave at least $100,000 to the government and directed their money into initiatives to help society would receive a first class Sathapana Cheat medal from the king and the royally-bestowed title of Oknha.

Now the government will only ask the king to give the Oknha title to individuals who contribute $500,000 or more.

There are three levels of Oknha – Lork Oknha refers to the richest, followed by Neak Oknha and Oknha.

Government secretary-general Soy Sokha could not provide the exact figures on the number of business tycoons who are Oknha as of press time yesterday.

However, he told Khmer Times the increase in the amount of cash needed to secure the title will help develop the country.
“The more money we have, the more we are able to develop,” he said. “Our development will never stop.”

A government official who asked not to be named said there are now nearly 1,000 Oknha in Cambodia...
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/37151/ ... tle-soars/

That's a smart move, maybe they could call the new one the "Okhna - S" or something to distinguish it from the naff old $100,000 one? This would create a huge demand for title upgrades.

Good, way too many average Oknha's around town these days, saw one in a tired old land cruiser with a smoky exhaust pipe honking his way through rush hour traffic the other day.

franzjaeger wrote: ↑Tue Apr 04, 2017 9:09 am Good, way too many average Oknha's around town these days, saw one in a tired old land cruiser with a smoky exhaust pipe honking his way through rush hour traffic the other day.

how did u know he was an okhna?

The potential!!!!

Bronze Oknha, Silver Oknha, Gold Okhna, Diamond Okhna. Endless possibilities.

hanno wrote: ↑Tue Apr 04, 2017 10:35 am The potential!!!!

Bronze Oknha, Silver Oknha, Gold Okhna, Diamond Okhna. Endless possibilities.

But the first lowest grade would be a '' wooden '' one made from legal cut timber of-course .

The foolish Privilege of the foolish Privileged !!!!!!

Also, a new title has been created to honour those working in police and national security:

Top police honored with new royal title
5 April 2017
The newly-created royal title “Sante Bandit” has been bestowed on 13 senior Interior Ministry officials to recognize their efforts in maintaining security and public order.

A royal decree signed by acting head of state Samdech Say Chhum on Monday said the title had been conceived to honor those who make great contributions to national security and are skilled in commanding police forces.

In the past, such individuals were awarded with honorary doctorates from the Cambodian Police Academy. This title, which is also affiliated to the academy, is intended to replace those doctorates.

The 13 recipients include Interior Ministry secretaries of state Gen. Am Sam An, Gen. Teng Savong, Gen. Ouk Kimlek and Gen. Dul Koeun, ministry under-secretaries of state Gen. Lour Ramin, Heng Hak and Chan Ean and National Police Chief Gen. Neth Savouen.

Gen. Mao Bunnarin, the director-general of logistics and finance, Gen. Sok Phal, the director-general of immigration, Gen. Mao Chandara, the director-general of identification, Chan Kimseng, the director-general of prisons, and Khieu Sopheak, the chief of the Interior Minister’s cabinet, also received the title.
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/37238/ ... yal-title/

[quote and are skilled in commanding police forces.
][/quote]

LOL !!!!

Amid the discussion on how useful these new titles will be, the fact that there is any sort of discussion and need for justification is interesting in itself.
Interior Minister Kheng defends new titles
2 May 2017
Mr Kheng said the titles were an incentive for those who had devoted their lives to protecting national security and public order for more than 40 years. “We should encourage people who do good things, rather than breeding a culture of jealousy,” he said.

Mr Kheng added that the titles were a fair reward for officials who had made great achievements. A royal decree signed by acting head of state Samdech Say Chhum said the title had been conceived to honour those who made great contributions to national security and were skilled in commanding police forces.

When the creation of the titles was announced last month, political analyst Meas Ny was quoted by media as saying the move would create further division in society.
Mr Nee said it was good to encourage government officials, but suggested new titles were unnecessary and existing laws already contained provisions to reward public servants.

In the past, senior police were awarded with honorary doctorates from the Cambodian Police Academy. This title, which is also affiliated to the academy, is intended to replace these doctorates...
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/37992/ ... yal-title/