Clinton fundraiser was former SL govt PR agent

Pro-Democrat Zuberi delayed disclosure of 2014 consultancy for Colombo:

A top fundraiser for both the Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama presidential campaigns is being highlighted in some US news media as a one-time Sri Lankan government-hired political liaison agent who has gone un-punished for failing to register his hiring with the US authorities. Imaad Zuberi, a businessman and active Democratic Party fundraiser, "raked in millions of dollars working on behalf of the government of Sri Lanka and its central bank over the course of five months in 2014," reports the conservative news website The Washington Free Beacon.

Zuberi, who apparently serves on high-level Party fund-raising committees, was never punished for waiting months to register his work on behalf of a foreign government, a delay that violated the US government 'Foreign Agents Registration Act'.

The Beacon claims that Zuberi was paid $4.5 million by the Sri Lankan government during his 2014 work contract, while an additional $2 million went to a company associated with him at the time. Zuberi's activities were not disclosed to the Justice Department's Foreign Agents Registration (FARA) Unit within the time period required by law, the website claims.

FARA requires US citizens acting as agents for foreign principals "in a political or quasi-political capacity" to periodically update the Justice Department on their work. A new registrant who has taken on a foreign client must make the relationship known to the Justice Department within 10 days of signing a contract with the foreign entity.

While the relationship between Zuberi and Sri Lanka ended in September 2014, Zuberi submitted his registration statement to the Justice Department only in August, 2014 - more than three months after he had first received a payment from the Sri Lankan government, the report said.

According to the Beacon, Zuberi is a major Democratic donor, co-chairing Obama's National Finance Committee. He now serves on Clinton's National Finance Committee. Zuberi was potentially linked to a Justice Department probe involving the Sri Lankan government, the report said.

Officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were not available for comment yesterday.