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Politicians make mockery of election expense declarations
By Durrant Pate
Senior Staff Reporter
Most of the politicians who contested the September 3 General Elections have apparently made a mockery of existing laws requiring them to file returns of their election expenses.
mere 27 out of the 146 candidates have filed their returns, which ought to be done six weeks after a general election. Therefore, the remaining 119 are in breach of the Representation of the People Act, in not filing their election expenses for the campaign period, which ran from Nomination Day to Election Day.
Checks by the Sunday Herald of the 27 candidates who filed their Form 22 returns to the Electoral Office showed that most of them indicated that they incurred no election expenses, whether personally or otherwise, or incurred minimal expenses of $50,000 and under. Interestingly, all of the declarations which were examined and found with election expenses of nil or under $50,000 came from the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), whose election campaign was more expensive and elaborate than its main rival, the People National Party (PNP).
The JLP candidates whose election expense declaration was either nil or under $50,000 included Industry and Commerce Minister and JLP General Secretary, Karl Samuda; Labour Minister, Pearnel Charles; Minister without Portfolio, James Robertson; State Ministers Robert Montague, Michael Stern, Everald Warmington and Laurie Broderick; Deputy Speaker of the House, Marisa Dalrymple; and government backbencher, Franklyn Witter.
Among the party’s losing candidates, Dennis Messias in South St. Andrew, Dennis Meadows in North Trelawny and Don Foote in Eastern Westmoreland, completed the JLP’s list of candidates who declared minimal election expenses of $50,000 and under.
Conversely, none of the 12 PNP candidates who made declarations, reported election expenses of under $150,000.
Minister Robertson declared that he incurred no expenses whatsoever for the election campaign period, while his fellow Minister, Pearnel Charles reported expenses of only $12,000.
Minister Samuda’s election expenses was a mere $25,000, of which $10,000 was for distribution of advertising material, $10,000 for expenditure on canvassing, and $5,000 for paying clerk or messenger.
He reported that his campaign, like his other two Cabinet colleagues, received no money from any sources in connection with the election.
State Minister Montague reported living expenses for the campaign period of $10,000 and petty expenses of $1,500 for repair to his car, while his fellow State Minister, Michael Stern, declared election expenses of $37,000, of which the greater portion of $25,000 was for distributing advertising materials.
Broderick declared on October 16, election expenses of $34,000, representing living expenses and $24,000 for distributing election materials, while Deputy House Speaker Dalrymple reported expenses of a mere $18,000, of which $10,000 was for living expenses and $1,800 to repair her motor vehicle.
Warmington’s declaration was similar to Stern, where he had reportedly spent $37,000, inclusive of $25,000 for distributing advertising materials. Witter declared a measly election expense of $12,000 for living and petty expenses.
While Prime Minister Bruce Golding did file a declaration of election expenses, our news team could not source a copy of it
While all of the 12 PNP candidates filed declaration of over $150,000, the declarations still raised eyebrows, given reports of massive expenditure by candidates on both sides of the political fence. JLP chairman, Robert Pickersgill, reported the biggest election expenses on the PNP side, with $2.43 million, of which the lion’s share of $1.5 million went to expenditure on printed materials.
External funding of $400,000 was declared by Pickersgill, which came from friends of his North West St. Catherine constituency.
Lisa Hanna came in a close second with $2.39 million, of which the greatest portion of just over $1 million was for 26 road and spot meetings at a cost of $40,000 each. In her election expense declaration, Hannah identified some of the sources of her funding and included $500,000 from her party, $200,000 from her companion, Richard Lake; $100,000 from Tankweld; and $300,000 from an E. Bullock from the United States.
Opposition Leader and PNP party president, Portia Simpson Miller, declared election expenses of $1.68 million, of which $800,000 was spent on election day. She further declared that funding of $1.6 million came from her Constituency Fund Raising Committee.
Dr. Morais Guy got a lifeline from the party, which directly funded almost 85 percent of his $1.65 million campaign expenses.
Derrick Kellier was also the beneficiary of funding from the party and former PNP president, P.J. Patterson, had the fortune of his company, Heis Consultants, financing part financing his $1.6 million election expenses.
Peter Bunting declared expenses of $1.5 million, with one million being spent for lunch and refreshment. He detailed advertising expenses of $280,462 for TVJ, $181,740 for CVM, $97,929 for Irie FM and $39,867 on ZIP103FM.
Roger Clarke declared expenses of $1.4 million and received $250,000 from the PNP.
When contacted, Director of Elections, Danville Walker, shared the Sunday Herald’s concerns about some of the declarations, but said the law only required that declarations be filed and no follow-up action taken to ensure that the declarations were truthful. He also made the point that the law, while stipulating that declarations be filed six weeks after an election, did not impose any penalty for non-compliance. He said the law was written in the spirit that there would be compliance.
By Durrant Pate
Senior Staff Reporter
Most of the politicians who contested the September 3 General Elections have apparently made a mockery of existing laws requiring them to file returns of their election expenses.
mere 27 out of the 146 candidates have filed their returns, which ought to be done six weeks after a general election. Therefore, the remaining 119 are in breach of the Representation of the People Act, in not filing their election expenses for the campaign period, which ran from Nomination Day to Election Day.
Checks by the Sunday Herald of the 27 candidates who filed their Form 22 returns to the Electoral Office showed that most of them indicated that they incurred no election expenses, whether personally or otherwise, or incurred minimal expenses of $50,000 and under. Interestingly, all of the declarations which were examined and found with election expenses of nil or under $50,000 came from the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), whose election campaign was more expensive and elaborate than its main rival, the People National Party (PNP).
The JLP candidates whose election expense declaration was either nil or under $50,000 included Industry and Commerce Minister and JLP General Secretary, Karl Samuda; Labour Minister, Pearnel Charles; Minister without Portfolio, James Robertson; State Ministers Robert Montague, Michael Stern, Everald Warmington and Laurie Broderick; Deputy Speaker of the House, Marisa Dalrymple; and government backbencher, Franklyn Witter.
Among the party’s losing candidates, Dennis Messias in South St. Andrew, Dennis Meadows in North Trelawny and Don Foote in Eastern Westmoreland, completed the JLP’s list of candidates who declared minimal election expenses of $50,000 and under.
Conversely, none of the 12 PNP candidates who made declarations, reported election expenses of under $150,000.
Minister Robertson declared that he incurred no expenses whatsoever for the election campaign period, while his fellow Minister, Pearnel Charles reported expenses of only $12,000.
Minister Samuda’s election expenses was a mere $25,000, of which $10,000 was for distribution of advertising material, $10,000 for expenditure on canvassing, and $5,000 for paying clerk or messenger.
He reported that his campaign, like his other two Cabinet colleagues, received no money from any sources in connection with the election.
State Minister Montague reported living expenses for the campaign period of $10,000 and petty expenses of $1,500 for repair to his car, while his fellow State Minister, Michael Stern, declared election expenses of $37,000, of which the greater portion of $25,000 was for distributing advertising materials.
Broderick declared on October 16, election expenses of $34,000, representing living expenses and $24,000 for distributing election materials, while Deputy House Speaker Dalrymple reported expenses of a mere $18,000, of which $10,000 was for living expenses and $1,800 to repair her motor vehicle.
Warmington’s declaration was similar to Stern, where he had reportedly spent $37,000, inclusive of $25,000 for distributing advertising materials. Witter declared a measly election expense of $12,000 for living and petty expenses.
While Prime Minister Bruce Golding did file a declaration of election expenses, our news team could not source a copy of it
While all of the 12 PNP candidates filed declaration of over $150,000, the declarations still raised eyebrows, given reports of massive expenditure by candidates on both sides of the political fence. JLP chairman, Robert Pickersgill, reported the biggest election expenses on the PNP side, with $2.43 million, of which the lion’s share of $1.5 million went to expenditure on printed materials.
External funding of $400,000 was declared by Pickersgill, which came from friends of his North West St. Catherine constituency.
Lisa Hanna came in a close second with $2.39 million, of which the greatest portion of just over $1 million was for 26 road and spot meetings at a cost of $40,000 each. In her election expense declaration, Hannah identified some of the sources of her funding and included $500,000 from her party, $200,000 from her companion, Richard Lake; $100,000 from Tankweld; and $300,000 from an E. Bullock from the United States.
Opposition Leader and PNP party president, Portia Simpson Miller, declared election expenses of $1.68 million, of which $800,000 was spent on election day. She further declared that funding of $1.6 million came from her Constituency Fund Raising Committee.
Dr. Morais Guy got a lifeline from the party, which directly funded almost 85 percent of his $1.65 million campaign expenses.
Derrick Kellier was also the beneficiary of funding from the party and former PNP president, P.J. Patterson, had the fortune of his company, Heis Consultants, financing part financing his $1.6 million election expenses.
Peter Bunting declared expenses of $1.5 million, with one million being spent for lunch and refreshment. He detailed advertising expenses of $280,462 for TVJ, $181,740 for CVM, $97,929 for Irie FM and $39,867 on ZIP103FM.
Roger Clarke declared expenses of $1.4 million and received $250,000 from the PNP.
When contacted, Director of Elections, Danville Walker, shared the Sunday Herald’s concerns about some of the declarations, but said the law only required that declarations be filed and no follow-up action taken to ensure that the declarations were truthful. He also made the point that the law, while stipulating that declarations be filed six weeks after an election, did not impose any penalty for non-compliance. He said the law was written in the spirit that there would be compliance.
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