Is candidate campaign spending crossing the line?

Candidates standing for elections to parliamentary seats in Malaysia must abide by a spending cap of RM200,000. This fact is well-known.

It is also well-known that there is a multitude of loopholes to this cap, including the lack of limits on the campaigns of political parties or other organisations during elections.

It is hardly a surprise for a by-election in Malaysia featuring one of the most prominent politicians in the country’s history to have a certain flair and extravagance.

It seems there is no shortage of supporters ready to go all out to campaign for their candidate.

However, it is crucial that all stakeholders involved in the election campaigns are aware of and abide by the restrictions in the Election Offences Act.

In particular, Section 15A prohibits any person (other than the candidate, his election agent and persons authorised in writing by the election agent) from incurring expenses in order to promote a candidate or his views.

During general elections, this provision is difficult to enforce because political parties and organisations tend to focus on national campaigns rather than the election of a certain candidate.

This can result in lavish campaign events that do not promote a candidate but instead focus on the promotion of a political party or a national political campaign, thus bypassing the spending limits clause

During a by-election, however, it is a very different scenario.

Severe consequences

If any organisation or person, including political parties, incurs any expenses during the campaign - from nomination day until polling day - such expenses must be authorised and lodged with the Election Commission as part of the candidate’s expenses.

Such a provision is not unique to Malaysia. The UK has similar provisions in the Representation of the People Act 1983. In fact, the wording of the law is almost identical except it provides allowances for the spending of less £500 to go unrecorded.

In the Brexit campaign, the Liberal Democrats and the Vote Leave campaign both faced hefty fines by the Election Commission for failing to account for expenses in their campaigns. The UK Election Commission also publishes guidelines on registering to incur expenses for a candidate.

In the past, there has been little to no scrutiny of accounts filed by-election candidates in Malaysia. These accounts rarely list expenses incurred by third-party organisations authorised by the candidate despite it being a common occurrence for these organisations to hold events for candidates as part of their campaign.

However, with the fresh appointments of a new EC chair and attorney-general, the candidates in Port Dickson may not be so fortunate enough to escape unscathed.

The consequences of such illegal practice are severe. Any person who incurs unauthorised expenses for a candidate will be liable to a fine of RM5,000, removed from the electoral roll and be disqualified from contesting in an election for five years.

If the candidate is aware of such expenses being incurred and knowingly breaches the RM200,000 cap, he or she will face the same punishment.

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ZOE RANDHAWA is a former Bersih advocacy officer. - Mkini