To impart transparency and independence on the next election, the Board of Chartered Accountants has proposed the establishment of an emergency committee for the implementation of a system to control parties’ accounting, in accordance with international standards.
The first purpose is to ensure financial transparency of political parties and election campaigns. In this context, Anis Wahabi, committee member gives us some clarification on this structure and party financing rules.
Interview:
What is the specific purpose of the emergency committee?
The emergency committee is composed of a group of accountants. The fundamental objective of creating such a committee is to ensure transparency in the funding of
political parties and electoral campaigns. Through this structure, the accountant will pledge to monitor the auditing of election campaigns.
What is the role of the accountant in the control of party funding?
The role of accountants is very important for the successful holding of the next elections. The point is to certify that funding sources and mode of financing of political parties respect the legal context. Party spending will also be monitored to ensure equality among all actors in the political arena.
How to control the financing of parties and elections?
We put forward a set of measures and procedures, ensuring transparency in both sources of funding and their destination. Actions to control party funding involve
primarily the appointment of a treasurer for each party responsible for keeping the accounts and management and financing of a single model of financial statements, namely the balance sheet, income statement, financial statements … apart from submitting political parties to control by an external auditor and setting up a guide of internal control measures of all parties.
Moreover, the measures we have planned in order to control the funding of electoral campaigns are focused on controlling accounts of campaigns conducted by candidates who should open a single bank account and on ensuring the publication of all candidates’ campaign accounts.
What is the role of the state in party financing and elections?
The state must provide for a total ban of funding from abroad and from the government and sanction parties that do not respect the law or whose funding is not transparent. I also wish
to recall that paragraph 52 of the Act requires that each party has a non-suspect bank account intended to fund the election campaign.
Each party must be well informed of the dangers of foreign financing. Tunisians want the
elections to be transparent and independent. So each party is required to accomplish its mission in a clear and transparent manner.
What do you think of postponing the Constituent Assembly election date for October 16?
Personally, I think that the date of October 16 will help ensure a good climate for organizing
the Constituent Assembly’s elections.
