Who would want to be an Afghan MP?

Doctors, mullahs, sons of warlords, feminists and even a prison inmate are among a motley crew of candidates contesting war-torn Afghanistan's October 20 legislative election.

The more than 2,500 candidates campaigning for the third parliamentary ballot since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 have turned the political scene into a game of Where's Wally.

Digitally-enhanced photos of political hopefuls, many of them running for the first time, have been plastered on blast walls, lamp posts and restaurant facades next to their symbol -- such as a palm tree or a cricket bat -- to help the largely illiterate population identify them.

Improving security and stamping out corruption are among the lofty promises made by candidates as they compete for the 249-seat lower house, which is widely derided as a lazy, ineffective body full of gangsters.

"I am a medical doctor so I know the pathology of society, where the problems lie and how to solve them," said Ahmad Tamim Rahman, who is among more than 800 candidates contesting the 33 seats allocated to Kabul.

"I am frustrated with the situation, with the never-ending poverty, war and misery." But campaigning for public office is challenging in a country where daily life is stalked by the threat of suicide attacks and fierce fighting between militants and government security forces.

Hundreds of people have been killed or wounded in the months leading up to the long-delayed ballot. At least nine candidates have died so far, most of them murdered in targeted killings.

The Taliban has warned candidates to withdraw from the ballot, which it has vowed to attack.

Kabul women's rights activist turned candidate Wida Saghary said she was not intimidated.

"I have always risked my life to fight for the rights of people, in particular women," Saghary told AFP.

"I am not afraid now that I am running for a seat in parliament."