Sunday March 17, 2013

GE13: Spending limits for campaigns stay the same, says Election Commission

By MAZWIN NIK ANIS and RAZAK AHMAD
newsdesk@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: Prospective candidates will have to make do with the current spending limits to finance their political campaigns at the upcoming 13th general election.

The Election Commission has said that it would not raise the ceiling.

EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Omar Wan Ahmad said the maximum RM100,000 permitted for those contesting for a state seat and RM200,000 for candidates vying for parliamentary seats were deemed sufficient.

He also said the Parliamentary Select Committee on Electoral Reforms did not bring up the issue nor did it request for the limit to be raised.

“Since no one, be it Barisan Nasional nor the Opposition members of the committee had brought up the subject, the limit will remain the same for this elections,” he said.

“The EC believes that the amount is more than sufficient,” he told The Star. “We do not want to see wastage.”

Besides printing, Wan Ahmad said candidates now used other means like Facebook and Twitter to get across their messages to the voters.

He also said the amount of deposit to be paid by a candidate RM10,000 for parliamentary candidate and RM5,000 for a state seat candidate would also remain the same.

He said it was necessary for the EC to collect deposits from candidates to ensure that only those who were serious would contest in an election. “Candidates will also have to place RM5,000 to clean up posters and banners at the end of polling.”

News

Sunday March 17, 2013

GE13: Spending limits for campaigns stay the same, says Election Commission

By MAZWIN NIK ANIS and RAZAK AHMAD newsdesk@thestar.com.my

By MAZWIN NIK ANIS and RAZAK AHMAD
newsdesk@thestar.com.my