March 29, 2018 By Ishmael Sallieu Koroma
Former Presidential Candidate of the Alliance Democratic Party (ADP), Mohamed Kamaraimba Mansaray, has predicted that the ruling All Peoples Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Dr. Samura Kamara, will win the March 31st run-off election.
Mansaray, who was speaking yesterday on Radio Democracy’s “Gud Morning Salone” said that although he has predicted that the APC presidential candidate would win the crucial election, it was not a declaration or endorsement of the party.
“The day I will do that, it’s going to be over my dead body. I’m not a god and I’m doing the best of my ability based on what I have seen all over the country,” he said, insisting that some people will misunderstand him to have joined or declared support for the APC.
He said his prediction was his personal opinion informed by research done across the country, save in Falaba, Kono and Koinadugu, his next destination.
When asked about his tendency to flip-flop, he replied that he cannot satisfy everyone, boasting that he was one of the most consistent politicians in the country and that he was aware that supporters of the Sierra Leone Peoples Party would feel aggrieved about his prediction.
Also, when asked about her running mate’s endorsement of the presidential candidate of the Sierra Leoen Peoples Party, Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio, Mansaray replied that he wasn’t aware until someone told him about it, adding that it was disappointing although he was unperturbed.
In a press statement released on Tuesday, March 27, his former running mate, Madam Isata Abdulai Kamara declared her support for the Mr. Bio ahead of the run-off election.
She also urged ADP supporters to support Mr. Bio for the country’s top job, adding that she believed in the leadership of the SLPP presidential candidate for the development of the country.
Although the Mr. Mansaray had claimed that he would not endorse any candidate in the run-off election, a leaked amateur video that was circulated on social media showed him endorsing the ruling APC candidate for the run-off elections in the local Themne dialect.
The ADP came fifth in the March 7 elections with 1.1% of the total valid votes cast an failed to win any parliamentary or local council seat.