Unclear law on food and drinks leaves: candidates hungry for engagement

• Even the offer of a water bottle can be considered a bribe

by Kelum Bandara   

The ambiguous rules surrounding food and drink during elections have placed considerable challenges on candidates, preventing them from offering even simple items like bottled water and refreshments to voters, the Daily Mirror learns.   

This situation complicates their ability to connect with voters.   

The Parliamentary Election Act says , “Every person who, corruptly, by himself or by any other person, either before, during or after an election, directly or indirectly gives or provides or causes to be given or provided, or is accessory to the giving or providing, or pays or engages to pay wholly or in part the expense of giving or providing any ‘meat, drink, refreshment or provision or any money or ticket or other means or device’ to enable the procuring of any meat, drink, refreshment, or provision, to or for any person for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any other person to give or refrain from giving his vote at such election or on account of any such person or any other person having voted or refrained from voting or being about to vote or refrain from voting at such election, and every elector who corruptly accepts or takes any such meat, drink, or refreshment or provision or any such money or ticket or who adopts such other means or device to enable the procuring of such meat, drink, refreshment, or provision shall be guilty of the offense of treating,”   

In recent days, the Election Commission prevented treats organized by some candidates for participants of their meetings. The Commission keeps receiving such complaints in the run up to the day of polling.   

Asked for a comment in this regard, Commission’s Chairman R.M.L.A. Ratnayake said that , in some instances, candidates seek permission to serve snacks such as chicken rolls for participants of their meetings but it amounts to bribes in terms of the law,   

“We only have to act according to the law . Even the offer of a water bottle can be considered a bribe in this manner. In case a complaint is made , we are compelled to act,” he said.   
However, former Chairman of the Election Commission Mahinda Deshapriya said it should be proven in a court of law that such offer of refreshments or meals were done with the intention of vote buying.   

“Candidates may offer refreshments, water bottles or any other food. Still it should be legally proven that vote buying is the ultimate intention. That is the challenging task,” he said.

Executive Director of PAFFREL Rohana Hettiarachchi said that it is broadly worded and gala parties hosted at star hotels and normal treatment of people with a few snacks along with tea or water bottles could be broadly categorised as bribes during election times.   

Therefore, he said that it should be focused how to define bribes in exact terms when onsidering amendments to the law in the future.