The Island
The National Rupavahini Corporation and the Independent Television Network are yet to recover a sum of Rs 39,909,275.05 as a result of telecasting pre-election advertisements in the years of 2005, 2006 and 2008, Parliament was told yesterday.
UPFA MP Mangala Samaraweera and the JHU were the parties and persons from whom money was due to be recovered, Minister of Mass Media and Information Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said, answering questions raised by JVP MP, R. P. A. Ranaweera Pathirana.
The UPFA is due to pay Rs 5,251,685.35 to the ITN for its pre-election advertisements in the said years. The same party owes a sum of Rs 15,367,622.30 to the National Rupavahini Corporation (NRC) for election advertisements telecast in the years 2005 and 2006, he said. Mr Mangala Samaraweera is due to pay Rs 18,796,967.40 for the pre-election advertisements telecast by the NRC in 2005 while, the Jathika Hela Urumaya is also due to pay a sum of Rs 493,000 for election advertisements it had telecast in the year of 2006.
The amount of money earned by the ITN during the years 2005, 2006 and 2008 by telecasting pre-election propaganda advertisements was Rs 20,398,857.21. The NRC had earned a sum of Rs 109,130,687.50 by telecasting election advertisements in the years 2005 and 2006.
Minister Yapa said that pre election propaganda advertisements were telecast by the ITN for the Presidential election 2005 and Provincial Council elections 2006, while the NRC had telecast election advertisements in 2005, 2006 and Provincial Council elections in 2008.
JVP Parliamentary Group leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that the UPFA which claims magnanimous victories and successes have not settled its bills to the ITN and NRC and the whole bunch of ministers in the Government must be ashamed of it. He suggested that several Ministers could resign and the money saved by doing so could be used to settle the bills.
Minister Yapa said that there was nothing to be ashamed of as the JVP too was a part of the UPFA in some of these elections and a party to be blamed. Both these institutions operate at commercial level. It is the general trade policy to render service on a credit basis. Accordingly, the said institutions would take action to recover the amount of money due to them by the political parties and persons, he said.