Financial Times

Illegal hoardings aplenty in Colombo
By Lenin Amarawickrama
The Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) said last week there was a large number of unauthorized hoardings some by prominent companies and banks being exhibited within city limits.

A CMC spokesman said that many big commercial names and big names in the advertising field were responsible for close to 100 unauthorised hoardings, causing loss of revenue to the council.

Other CMC officials said that the CMC has lost Rs 15,000 during the year 2003 per hoarding or billboard. The total estimated loss is Rs 2.62 million, they said adding that bureaucratic lethargy and delays were forestalling any action against errant advertising agencies.

According to laid down procedures by the CMC, advertising agencies who put up hoardings within city limits should clearly indicate the CMC reference (approval) number and the name of the firm at the bottom of the billboard.

All the advertising firms who are responsible for these hoardings have evaded this obligatory regulation to escape paying the relevant fee or the taxes. One official said that the lethargic attitude of the CMC has been taken for granted by some of the advertising firms.

The CMC stipulates that registered advertising companies should apply in writing in specified application forms giving the required details after which the relevant billboard can be put up after permission is granted by the council's planning and advertising committees.

"This problem can also arise when advertising clients give their jobs to unregistered advertising companies, or to individual commercial artists" the official said.

Kenneth Honter, President of the Accredited Advertising Agencies Association, said agencies are responsible for only the advertising content of the hoarding or the billboard. "We contract the hoarding supplier and it is the supplier who should pay the relevant fee or the taxes to the Municipal Council. When we pay the supplier it is all inclusive even the taxes," he said. "The culprits are hoarding contractors."

After checking out unauthorized hoardings on the Galle road, a reporter from The Sunday Times FT brought a particular, illegal hoarding advertising bank securities that he saw, to the notice of the firm responsible for the hoarding.

In response, the General Manager of the company said, " In all of our hoardings the logo appears. In this particular case our logo might have dropped accidentally."

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