QUETTA: General elections always create income generating opportunities for the people who are involved in various trade and business.

Printing press, tent service, cloth merchants, transporters, Suzuki

Van owners, painters, seasonal political workers and other people involved in election related business are the main beneficiaries. Even now mobile phone companies also joined the race of theprofit earners.

Display of posters, banners and other publicity material is necessary for election campaign as without it no party and candidate can run his election campaign.

All printing presses were busy day and night in printing big and small posters, handbills and stickers of the party and independent candidates taking part in the elections.

” We are very busy in printing posters and handbills of the candidates but this time our profit margin is very low,” Mutahir Saddiq, owner of a printing press said adding that the prices of all printing material increased by many fold during last five years.

Most of the printing press owners claimed that their profits had reduced by 30 to 40 per cent compared to the 2002 elections due to the price-hike.

The boycott of the election by component parties of All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM) also affected printing business in Quetta and other parts of the province. Printing business related to election campaign reduced 30 to 35 per cent in Quetta due to the boycott of the APDM and uncertainty regarding polls, Mohammad Iqbal, a printing press owner told Dawn, adding that after killing of Benazir Bhutto the situation further worsened.

Though, party and independent candidates were giving jobs to the printing presses in Quetta but big plastic posters and banners were printed in Lahore and Karachi as Panaflex printing facility was not available in Quetta.

The Election Commission of Pakistan has allowed a National

Assembly candidate to make election expenditure up to Rs1.5 million, while provincial assembly candidates can do election expenditure up to Rs1 million.

“Can any candidate contest election with the expenditure allowed by the EC,” an independent candidate asked the million dollar question. He is spending around Rs50,000 just for running 20 election camps that include daily wages of the workers, food, and other expenditures of the election camps. The rent of the place being used for camp is not included,” he said.

According to a survey conducted by Dawn an ordinary worker of the election camp is getting Rs200 daily. Even workers of the political parties are not ready to work voluntarily. “I am even paying money for mobile cards, “a candidate of a leading political party disclosed. Thousands of youths, including political workers got jobs at least for one month.

There is a heavy demand for experienced polling agents and political parties are in search of such polling agents. Femaleworkers were getting Rs500 to 700 daily for working in the offices of the candidates.

Transporters and Suzuki van owners are also getting their share in the election. Suzuki owners were earning Rs1,000 to 2,000 daily for working with independent and party candidates. Almost all school vans and such other vehicles are engaged in electioneering. Van drivers are demanding Rs4,000 to 5,000 for the polling day,” a candidate of a political party said, adding that he has no other option but to pay this amount to the van divers for bringing the voters to the polling stations, especially women voters.

The sale of patrol and diesel has also increased in this provincial capital. Vans and other vehicles being used for electioneering are getting patrol and diesel from the candidates. Big queues could be seen at patrol pumps and CNG stations in Quetta.

Though, most of the candidates preferred to use plastic banners to display their symbol and name, still large number of cloth banners could be seen in the city.

Tent service is another impotent thing that is needed from the first day of election campaign to the polling day. “We are heavily booked for polling day,” Dilawar Khan working with a tent service said. The workers of many candidates were offering more money to the tent service owners for the polling day with orders for food on the polling day.

Mostly party and independent candidates were of the view that only printing election posters and banners would cost a minimum of Rs1 million for a PA seat while for the national assembly printing expenditures goes up to Rs2.5 million.

Transport, election offices, workers payment, food, travelling and many other expenditure amounted to Rs10 to 12 million for a PS seat while for the national assembly these expenditures could go up to Rs20 t0 25 million for a NA seat in Balochistan.