Home > 2.6 Campaign finance > MOLDOVA - Joint Opinion on the Legal Framework of Governing the Funding of Political Parties and Electoral Campaigns
 
 
 
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Paragraph 68
 

This is particularly worrying as there have been numerous allegations of various covert funding schemes. They related, for example, to cases of funding through intermediaries, by using lending contracts or other types of contracts to transfer funds, and where the final sources of these funds were offshore enterprises. Furthermore, the OSCE/ODIHR noted in its observation report on the 2016 presidential election that "continued instances of abuse of administrative resources detracted from the process" and called for the introduction of an effective enforcement mechanism "to promote a level playing field among contestants and ensure the separation of state and party interests." During the meetings conducted in Chişinău, several interlocutors referred, for example, to cases of unemployed persons who made large donations to political parties and to the organisation of campaign events which were not reported in the campaign funding reports. They also stressed that political advertising accounted for the largest share of campaign spending, but that this was not comprehensively reflected in the financial reports. A need for thorough oversight of parties’ investments in private media and in foundations and charity organisations created by them was also indicated.