The Superior Court of Electoral Justice (TSJE), published the surrender of electoral expenses of all the political parties, movements and alliances that participated in the last municipal ones.
According to the observed data, the National Republican Association (ANR) spent G. 10,718 million (US $ 1.6 million) during the last municipal elections. The Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA), spent G. 3,680 million (US $ 541 thousand). The Patria Querida Party (PPQ), spent G. 1,737 million (US $ 255 thousand). The Let’s Make Party; G. 1,613 million (US $ 237 thousand). The National Meeting Party (PEN); G. 117 million (US $ 17 thousand). The Guasu Front; G. 102 million (US $ 15 thousand), just to name some of the most important parties.
National Crusade of Paraguayan Cubas, has not yet delivered its surrender.
Regarding alliances such as Juntos por Asunción (JA), led by the liberal Eduardo Nakayama with other nucleations such as the PPQ and the PEN, it spent G. 1,055 million (US $ 155 thousand).
What is striking about the report published by the TSJE is that the two main parties did not reveal their main financiers. For the ANR, Horacio Cartes does not appear as one of the contributors. While in the PLRA he did not publish the name of his bond creditors.
FERRARA
Marta Ferrara, executive director of Seeds for Democracy, expressed that law 6501/2020 on political financing is a law that does not trace illegal money. That is, only legal money can be tracked.
“There is also no access to information from political parties. It can only be done through the TSJE. The parties’ bank accounts were not declared freely accessible either, as is the case in Mexico and Colombia. Here it is still private information ”, he lamented.
When asked about the political reading that causes Cartes not to appear in the contributors of the Colorado Party, she pointed out that this shows that the law does not work. Since, the same former president of the Republic, affirmed several times that he contributes his resources in favor of the ANR during the elections.
“That is the proof that this law does not work. Either Cartes is a compulsive liar or it really pays off and he doesn’t control himself. The former president of the Republic said that he has already spent a lot of money on politics, the authorities should investigate where all that money goes ”, he urged.
NO PUNISHMENT
Ferrara regrets that the violation of the electoral law, through minor crimes, does not generate penalties for the perpetrators. He alluded to the assisted vote observed in the last municipal elections. With this, the analyst points out that, if there are no punishments for minor crimes, fewer will be carried out for large offenses such as political financing with illegal sources.
“The only sanction that has been applied so far was for Efraín Alegre and he is not an authorizing officer. Computers are campaign managers, not candidates. So that also shows that justice only works for enemies, “he said.
Compliance with the law is the responsibility of the TSJE. Once an offense has been detected, it must be referred to the Public Ministry.
