Take campaign finance seriously

THE issue of campaign finance reform has traditionally been punted forward by successive administrations as a good idea...for the future. The time to deal with that issue is now. The vigorous and costly campaigning for local government elections only foreshadows the spending in the next general election.

The Elections and Boundaries Commission has expressed exasperation about this expenditure, far more than anything allowed in existing electoral law. The Representation of the People Act limits each candidate to campaign spending of $50,000, but there is no law governing political parties.

Spending on the 2015 election topped $157 million, according to the TT Advertising Association. The Elections and Boundaries Commission in its report on the 2015 election wrote in exasperation, “It was patently obvious that political parties were completely unfettered by the prevailing laws regarding the election expenses of candidates.”

There seems little possibility of campaign finance reform being revisited with an election on the immediate horizon, so that will need to be shelved until a more conscientious government summons the will to address the issue.

As appalling as the excesses of campaign financing might be, there is a much quieter and more troubling legislative issue to be addressed in putting the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act to work, on the second anniversary of its non-implementation.

Calls by the Joint Consultative Council to implement the legislation began as early as October 2017 on the heels of its proclamation. In January 2018, the American Chamber of Commerce of TT welcomed the appointment of a Procurement Regulator and a Public Procurement Board. And there the matter rested, with the new board homeless and unwilling to compromise its independent position by taking up quarters in a government building.

A year later, the procurement regulator was reported to be acquiring the staff required to begin operations and the Office of Procurement Regulation (OPR) has established offices at Tower D in the Port-of-Spain International Waterfront Centre.

The government has offered explanations it believes to be rational and reasoned for the delay, but it’s difficult to discern any vigorous political will driving the implementation of the act forward. On November 13, Procurement Regulator Moonilal Lalchan issued a public advisory that the draft regulations, after review with government and other key stakeholders had been submitted to the Ministry of Finance.

Having spent much of 2019 in discussions with stakeholders and hosting workshops explaining process and procedure, it’s clear that the OPR is keen to move forward, acting on a full proclamation of procurement legislation. The next step in holding the public sector accountable for its purchases, spending and disposal of assets depends on the government.

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"Take campaign finance seriously"

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