President faces internal challenges within potential coalition partners
By: Staff Writer
July 14, Colombo (LNW): President Ranil Wickremesinghe faces internal challenges within potential coalition partners due to differing ideologies and past corruption. Despite not officially declaring his candidacy, his allies have begun promoting him.
Opposition and ruling party members have mixed feelings about supporting him due to his market-oriented economic reforms and the SLPP’s poor reputation following Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.
Public opinion remains divided, and Wickremesinghe’s popularity is gradually increasing. He has enacted several economic reforms to address the country’s financial crisis, which have been unpopular among some groups but necessary for economic recovery.
The Election Commission (EC) has been explaining new campaign finance laws ahead of Sri Lanka’s scheduled Presidential elections and the expected Parliamentary elections.
Historically, election campaign financing in Sri Lanka has been chaotic, with funds flowing freely from various sources, including corporate entities, village businessmen, and even foreign governments.
These contributions often come with expectations of future returns, such as favorable treatment in business deals.
Sri Lanka faces challenges in enforcing its election laws, particularly regarding campaign financing. Although there are legal provisions to disqualify candidates who exceed spending limits, enforcement is weak, relying heavily on public complaints and police investigations, which rarely lead to action against winners.
A Commission of Inquiry is currently examining how to align election laws with contemporary needs, potentially restoring public trust in politics. However, there is skepticism about whether the EC is serious about addressing financing irregularities or if a French-style independent commission might be more effective.
Sri Lanka has been considering a hybrid system combining FPP and PR to better reflect the national vote in Parliament. The Dinesh Gunawardene Parliamentary Select Committee of 2022 recommended this system, but there has been a delay in implementing these reforms.
Election laws become farcical when it comes to monitoring campaign financing, and it is a reason for the honest individual candidate who is squeamish about collecting such under-the-table donations to come forward in elections nowadays.
Given the amounts needed for spending at elections, especially when there is PR and a whole big district to be covered unlike a smaller constituency in the past, the reluctance is understandable. A Code of Conduct for candidates is nothing but a joke without any punitive action to follow.
Though a candidate can be disqualified if they exceed the spending limit, the onus is on the public to complain. If the EC is to initiate action they have to rely on the Police to start an investigation and the Attorney General to see if it is actionable in a court. Any action against the winners will be when ‘hell freezes over’.
Overall, the article underscores the urgent need for effective regulation and transparency in campaign financing and the importance of electoral reform to ensure fair representation in government.
