Foreign, domestic firms barred from donating for political activities

MANILA, Philippines - Foreign and domestic corporations are prohibited from giving donations to any political party or candidate for political activities, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The prohibition is absolute, SEC General Counsel Camilo Correa said, in reaction to a query posed by Legal Access Law Offices on behalf of its corporate client on whether Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code has repealed or amended Section 36 of the Corporation Code.

Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code provides an enumeration of natural and juridical persons, including corporations who, because of benefits, privileges, licenses of franchise received from government, are prohibited from making contributions directly or indirectly for purposes of partisan political activities.

“The commission is of the opinion that Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code neither amended nor repealed, whether expressly or impliedly, Section 36 (9) of the Corporation Code,” according to the opinion signed by Correa.

The SEC said Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code should be appreciated as an amplification of the absolute prohibition contained in the Corporation Code.

The SEC said that while the Corporation Code is a blanket prohibition over all corporations, the Omnibus Election Code is industry and activity specific, taking into consideration the amount of influence the prohibited entity can exercise over the government. The fines and penalties provided also differ for the two laws, it added.

“These differences do not clash with each other to the point that one is a bar to enforcement and effectivity of the other… the presence of these two laws, especially as they affect corporations, serves as a more effective deterrent for corporations planning to make contributions for partisan political activities,” the SEC said.

The SEC said the nationality of a corporation does not matter in determining the applicability of the prohibition.

Campaign spending

Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said they would not allow an increase in campaign spending even if the campaign period is extended.

In a press briefing, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said they are eyeing an extension of the campaign period of one month and 75 days for local and national candidates, respectively.

“The extension of the campaign period does not entail an increase in the spending cap,” Jimenez said. 

The Omnibus Election Code states that the campaign period for national candidates should be 90 days before election day while local bets are given 45 days. This means that the start of the campaign period for national candidates should not begin until Feb. 9, 2016 while that of  local candidates should be on March 25, 2016.

According to Jimenez, the extension of the campaign period is a move against candidates who engage in self-promoting activities even before the actual campaign period starts. “What’s happening now is candidates spend so much in campaigning but these spending are not included in their Statement of Contributions and Expenditures. If we start the campaign period early, spending power is reduced and they are eating away at their cap essentially,” he said.

Under the law, candidates for president and vice president could spend a maximum of only P10 for each voter, while other candidates are limited to P3 for each voter.

Political parties and independent candidates are allowed to spend P5 for every voter.

Based on the draft calendar of activities for the May 2016 polls, the campaign period for all candidates is from Jan. 10 to May 7, 2016.– With Sheila Crisostomo