Business may be brisk for T-shirt print shops, electronic stores and flat-bed truck drivers as politicians campaign ahead of Sunday’s election, but that doesn’t mean business is good.
According to some shop owners and entrepreneurs, sales have surged during the last few months, but political parties are spending less on campaigns than they have in past. And for those who were anticipating a large hike in revenue, the results have been disappointing.
“In 1998 [during the previous general election], we were more busy compared to now,” said Kao Sokhon, 40, owner of the LongTry silk-screen shop.
She said during the 1998 election, she filled orders for about 100,000 printed T-shirts from various political parties. During the current campaign, she has printed only one-tenth as many. That has meant nearly a 75 percent, or $3,000, decline in sales.
Taing Sroy, general manager of Hiep Sreng electronics store, said he has also seen a sharp decline in business compared with previous elections.
Since campaigns officially kicked off last month, he said, he has sold about 100 microphone and amplifier sets, used for rallies and to broadcast messages from vehicles. That’s half the number he sold during the 1998 elections.
He added: “The parties don’t buy the good sets. They come buy the cheapest priced ones, which cost $50 each.”
In addition to slower campaign sales, Taing Sroy said the threat of post-election unrest has also hampered his business.
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets for weeks following the election in 1998, protesting the election results.
The campaigns have had a smaller effect on truck drivers, said a 22-year-old driver who only gave his name as Huch.
He said he has been hired several times by members of all three main political parties, CPP, Funcinpec and Sam Rainsy Party, to drive supporters on his flat-bed truck during their rallies. But, he said, for $15 a day, the pay is hardly worth the work.
In a normal day, he can make up to $20 a day and drive for only a short time, delivering goods.
But during rallies, he said: “We have to drive the whole day and even if the engine gets broken, they do not pay for the engine.”
Still, he said, he won’t turn down a client. “I don’t care about any party, as long as they give me money,” he said.
