By Svetlana Marshall
THE absence of Campaign Financing Legislation, in Guyana, is a cause for major concern, the International Electoral Observation Missions have said, even as they challenged the country to put adequate legislative systems in place to provide for transparency and accountability within political parties.
Currently, financing of political parties and campaigns in Guyana is guided by the Representation of the People Act, however, the legislation only mandates that candidates and their agents submit reports on their expenditures to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) at the end of the electoral process. This provision, the Electoral Observation Missions said, is woefully inadequate.
In delivering the European Union Election Observation Mission’s (EU EOM’s) preliminary statement on Monday’s General and Regional Elections, the Chief Observer, Urmas Paet alluded to the fact that political parties and their candidates raise funds from private sources in-country and abroad, without any limitations regarding the source or amount of donation. The situation, he said, is further compounded by the fact that there is no legislative requirement for these political parties to disclose sources of funding though Guyana has given international commitment to root out corruption.
“Guyana acceded to the UN Convention against Corruption in 2008, but its legal framework is insufficient to provide for transparency and accountability in political party and campaign finance. There is no system of public financing for political parties or election campaigns,” Paet told journalists during a press conference at the Guyana Marriott on Wednesday.
He said based on observation by the EU EOM, the ruling A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) and the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had significant funds at their disposal, “unmatched” by any other party.
“With implicit consent of the two main political contenders, GECOM does not assume its oversight responsibility to monitor campaign finance,” he further noted.
In the existing legislation, there is a cap on parties’ expenditure during the campaign season, however, it is outdated, as well as the financial sanctions for parties’ failure to disclose the amount of money spent. These provisions, however, were never implemented. “GECOM and all parties admitted that the legal provisions for campaign finance have never been implemented,” the Chief of Mission stated.
The Commonwealth Observer Group, in Guyana, made similar observations when its Chief of Mission, Rt Hon Owen Arthur delivered an interim statement on Wednesday at Cara Lodge. Arthur, a former Prime Minister of Barbados, underscored the need for Campaign Financing Laws and regulations in the country. “The current limit on expenses ranges from GY$25,000 to GY$50,000 or the equivalent of US$125-250, this is clearly outdated,” the Commonwealth Chief Observer said.
Similar observations were recorded by the Organisation of American States (OAS) Electoral Observation Mission (EOM). It, however, was keen on noting that in addition to lack of adequate provisions for the disclosure of sources of contributions, there is no established procedure that guides the use of state resources.
As such, the OAS EOM, led by Jamaica’s former Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, advocated for modernized legislative frameworks to be put in place to foster greater transparency and accountability along the campaign trail.
“The Mission, therefore recommends: that as recommended in 2015, the existing legislation should be revised and modernized to include clear limits on campaign spending, the identification of the sources of funding, the prevention of anonymous donations, and the limitation of private and in-kind donations to political and electoral campaigns,” Golding submitted. He added that consideration should also be given to the inclusion, in such a regulatory framework, of state funding for political parties and campaigns. Golding went one step further and submitted the OAS model legislation on campaign finance for consideration by the Guyanese leaders.
While the major parties in Guyana have long indicated their commitment to putting the requisite legislation in place to facilitate transparent campaign financing, the issue remains a live one. Throughout the entire electoral season, only The Citizenship Initiative (TCI), a small political party, made public its campaign finances which totalled $2.5M at the end of January, 2020.
The Carter Centre, after observing the 2015 General and Regional Elections, recommended that a campaign financing legislation be introduced to ensure transparency in the sources of funding to contesting political parties. “Guyana should consider establishing and enforcing realistic limits on campaign expenditures to help promote equity, and avoid inequalities in access to resources, which undermine the democratic process,” the Carter Center had said. To date, the Center’s position remains the same.
Source: https://issuu.com/guyanachroniclee-paper/docs/guyana_chronicle_epaper_03_05_2020