People angry over prices in run-up to elections

Pathan Kot: Election banners and flags of all three main political parties flutter across Punjab, the main battleground for votes in a February 18 election.

But the mood is far from festive in the run-up to the parliamentary elections.

Cold winter rain has turned many country roads in the province to mud, but it is rising prices that are the main complaint.

"Feeding my family is my biggest worry. What do I care about politics if half my children go to bed hungry?" said Jumma Khan, an unemployed labourer and father of 10, in the small town of Pathan Kot in central Punjab.

The vote in Punjab, home to half of Pakistan's 160 million people, is likely to decide the result. The province has 148 seats of the 272 up for grabs. Another 70 seats in the 342-seat National Assembly are reserved for non-Muslims and women.

Khan said he voted for the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League (PML in the last election in 2002 but wouldn't this time.

"I'll stamp the lion in the hope that they can get me work," said Khan, referring to the symbol of Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (N).

Musharraf tells reporters who ask him about his sliding popularity that he still has support in the countryside, where most people live.

There is little evidence of that in Punjab, where farmers say they are being squeezed by higher prices for fertiliser, pesticides, electricity and fuel.

"Musharraf and his people are joking with the poor. God knows how we're surviving," said farm labourer Amjad Ali, who said he made Rs150 ($2.40) a day when he got work.