Main Candidates at Sri Lanka Presidential Elections Will Spend Rs 5, 000 Million

Colombo) – The main candidates at the forthcoming Sri Lankan Presidential Elections including the incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe are set to spend between Rs. 3,000 to 5, 000 million for their respective campaigns.

Presidential candidate Janaka Rathnayaka from the ‘United Lanka Podujana Party, said it is not a good idea to spend such a large amount of money at an election when the country is currently faced with an economic crisis, where in many cases certain families have no proper meals.

He also said that millions of voters attend election meetings and rallies, after they are funded by local politicians tied up with the main candidates.

“The money used for the  election campaign will help to settle half of the country’s debt. Therefore, it is better to investigate how the candidates possess so much money in their accounts without paying taxes,” Rathnayaka said. 

In a country where 40 percent of the population cannot afford a meal, spending such a large amount of money on politics is absurd, he added.