COLOMBO – Sri Lanka’s Election Commission (EC) has asked all political parties contesting in the upcoming presidential election to compile the tax payment details of individuals and companies funding the candidates under the new Election Expenditure Act.
The EC has asked the parties to provide details of name, address, national identity card number (NIC), Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) at the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) or the registration number of the donor, contributor, or the institution incorporated or non-incorporated, who contribute for campaign financing.
In an extraordinary gazette notification dated August 16 and published on Monday (19), the EC declared that each candidate is allowed to spend a maximum of 109 rupees for each voter in the presidential election campaigning activities, totalling 1,868.3 million rupees ($6 million) per candidate.
The parties must submit expenditure reports to the EC within 21 days of the election results being declared, the gazette said.
The EC said the report should include an estimated cost of all donations and contributions, accepted or received in cash or kind by such recognized or other political party or candidate, stating whether they are donations, loans, advances or deposits along with the “name, address and number of NIC, TIN of the IRD or the registration number of the donor, contributor, or the institution incorporated or non-incorporated, who made the donation or contribution.”
“This report should include expenditure on all media activities (propaganda notices, handbills, posters, banners, pictures, photographs advertisements etc.), radio and television programs, news bulletins, magazines, periodicals, social media, digital exposes or any other digital media or publications, and supply of fuel to vehicles with the information whether payments were made or not,”
A record number of 39 candidates are contesting in the September 21 poll.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, the main opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, and the leader of the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Anura Kumara Dissanayake are the key candidates.
The EC will publish a notice within 10 days after receiving a campaign financing report in at least one national newspaper, informing the date, time and place where the report could be scrutinized.
“Failure to submit the reports before the stipulated date, and submission of defective reports, is an offence, by the recognized political party or other political party or the elector who nominated the candidate or candidate in terms of the Presidential Election Act…. and will be subject to penalties thereunder,” the EC said in the gazette.
“In the Presidential Election 2024, any recognized political party, other political party elector who nominated the candidate or candidate should not solicit or accept directly or indirectly any donation, contribution in cash or kind for the purpose of promotion or accommodation of any party or candidate from any government department, public corporation or company incorporated under the Companies Act…”
The new law prevents political parties from accepting anything from a foreign state, international organization, or a body incorporated outside Sri Lanka, and any company incorporated in Sri Lanka under the Companies Act.
-economynext.com
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