Malaysian Media Monitors’ Diary
2 March 2008
http://www.aliran.com/elections/2008/03/bn-spends-over-rm1-million-on-ads.html
Barison Nasional reportedly spent just over RM1 million in print advertising alone, according to corruption watchdog agency Transparency International-Malaysia (TI) and a 28 February Malaysiakini report.
The organisation began monitoring TV election advertisements on 28 February-where the “lion’s share of election advertising monies are believed to go”. TI is monitoring advertisements in six English dailies, five Malay newspapers, four Chinese titles and three Tamil dailies.
Under the law, a parliamentary candidate can spend RM200,000 and a state candidate RM100,000 over the course of the campaign. It is required that all expenses be recorded. “This means that the BN candidates have only RM197,780 (for parliament seat) and RM98,897 (state seat) left to spend for the remaining 10 days of the campaign period”.
Interesting, considering the number of BN television advertisements bombarding viewers through the national channels which cannot (or should not) come cheap. According to TI, none of the opposition parties used election advertising in any of the 18 papers.