Its candidates in Polonnaruwa have received a mere Rs. 20,000 per head, a sum with which carrying out an election campaign is unthinkable. A provincial chief minister has borrowed around Rs. 20 million from his friends to spend for the campaign, reports say.
The reason is the attitude of party chief, president Maithripala Sirisena. Every party depends on their businessmen friends for funding. But, the president is having a policy against businessmen, believing all of them to be corrupt. He refrains from dealing with businessmen, thinking it will blemish his name. Therefore, the SLFP does not get any funding for the election campaign.
On the other hand, the UNP has always been businessmen-friendly, and sources say the party has been able to collect around Rs. one billion for its campaign.
However, the leading recipient of funding is the SLPP, which is getting money in an unprecedented manner. They get funding from India and also from the businessmen who had been with the Rajapaksa regime. It is the highest spender in the election campaign.
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