CAIRO - It's not only the politicians who wait for the legislative elections, but also many people working in certain other professions, because it's a season when they can make a tidy profit from the candidates. The legislative elections are held every five years in Egypt and many people can't wait for them to come round for financial reasons. Those who profit from the elections include calligraphers, printers, coffee shop owners, caterers, bodyguards and thugs. “The elections are a very important season for us and we start preparing for it 12 months in advance,” said Mahmoud Fathi, a calligrapher. “Many candidates make me buy the cloth [for the banners] and just pay me for the calligraphy. But others pay for the cloth too,” he added. “The cost of an election banner ranges between LE35 and LE100, depending on the size and the amount of colour used.” Many coffee shop do very well out of the elections, when the candidates exploit their crowding premises to push their manifestos and woo the voters. In return for using the coffee shop, the candidate has to foot the bill for the tea, coffee and soft drinks for the customers who've come to listen to him. Some candidates hold court in famous coffee shops across the nation, where they might spend several hours meeting with the voters. “It's not unusual to find the candidates in the coffee shops, especially now, as the elections are just round the corner,”said Fathi Abdullah, a waiter in a café in Al-Gamalia, Islamic Cairo. “The candidates seek to market themselves in the coffee shops – it's great for both the candidates and the owners,” he added. Bodyguards play a very important role too. Candidates use them to show off their social prestige and power too. “A candidate may rent a bodyguard for the whole period of the elections or on a daily basis,” says a man called Sabri, who owns an agency that provides people who need them with bodyguards. “The price ranges between LE300 and LE700, depending how dangerous the mission is. The candidate must also provide his bodyguards with meals and medical in case of injury.” (1 dollar = LE5.7). In 2005, thugs established themselves for the first time as an important feature of parliamentary elections. Most of them are criminals, hired by candidates to beat up their rivals and the latter's supporters.
