Election candidates mum over details of campaign expenses
When it comes to declaring their expenses to the Election Commission at the end of a campaign, election candidates are usually unable to disclose details of the exact amount spent.
And so it was with PAS and BN candidates who contested in the recent Pendang parliamentary and Anak Bukit state seat by-elections.
All that Umno information and security chief for the by-elections, Badruddin Amiruddin, could say was that the expenses incurred by the two BN candidates were within the limit of RM50,000 (for a parliamentary seat) and 30,000 (for a state assemby seat) set by the Election Commission.
"We have not spent more than the amount set," he told malaysiakini when contacted in Kuala Lumpur today.
Asked about a detailed statement, Badruddin said the party would be preparing one soon to be submitted to the EC although he did not volunteer a definite date.
Under section 4 of the Election Offences Act 1954, candidates are required to submit their election expenses within 21 days of the announcement of the election results. Failure to do so will disqualify the candidate from contesting in one subsequent election.
Workers were volunteers
Like Badruddin, PAS information secretary Mustapha Long was unable to reveal to malaysiakini the party's electoral expenditure, echoing the former's response that "we have not spent more than the amount stipulated by the EC".
Mustapha said most of the party workers were volunteers.
"The most we do is to provide food. Many members funded themselves during the campaign," he said.
Meanwhile, DAP secretary general Kerk Kim Hock has questioned BN's election expenses.
"It is very obvious that BN often violates the EC's regulations on campaign expenses if the number of advertisements in the media and dinners hosted by politicians from the ruling party
are anything to go by," he said.
"There are definitely ambiguities in this area and loopholes in the law. There can be rules and regulations but the question is how does the EC enforce them?"
EC officials were not available for comment today.
On July 18, BN veteran candidate Othman Abdul defeated PAS' Dr Mohd Hayati Othman in Pendang, while Anak Bukit was successfully retained by PAS when Amirrudin Hamzah defeated BN's Zakaria Said of BN.
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