While not required by law, the Election Commission (EC) should keep an eye on political party spending during elections instead of merely resting on its laurels, said Bersih chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah.

Although the EC is powerless under present laws to act against excessive political party spending, Maria said the EC should still be more proactive and question election candidates on how much their political parties have spent on their behalf.

“ The EC has always said that it is not the one to monitor political parties, but you have to. You have to because it is all part of unbalanced political financing,” she told Malaysiakini when contacted today.