The National Assembly by-election for Jarra West is tomorrow, Thursday, July 1. So on the eve of this day, I have decided to rove my phone through the constituency.

I made my first call to Musa Saidykhan's house, the APRC candidate. When I asked him about his chance tomorrow, he said he is optimistic. However, he reiterated that voters in his native Kanikunda proved very difficult to be convinced.

My second call was made to the APRC Campaign Manager, Karl Saidykhan. His analysis was no different from that of his candidate. Though, he added that they are praying for their candidate.

Third, an anonymous. This one is a civil servant. Thus, I have decided not to reveal his identity. Nevertheless, he stated that their is a common strategy to attend APRC meetings, especially for those who fear harassment and intimidation by APRC thugs. But come Thursday, "we will vote against them", he asserted. This one is a widely known APRC militant. So I encountered a little bafflement here.

Next, Kemeseng Jammeh. He apologized for not being able to be reached in my previous trials, including earlier this morning. He said he had gone to Soma in order to mobilize the polling agents. He stated that the campaign went very well and that they are very optimistic. 

A personal take: Well, after getting analysis from people within and outside the various camps, I would honestly project that the Coalition will be victorious in the Jarra West by-election. I found out that Jarrankas have never been keen in an election more than this one in the history of the constituency. People(Jarra West registered voters) are commuting to the area in large numbers in order to cast their votes. So, I expect the turn out to be very high.

From above, both candidates mentioned optimism. But, who sounds more optimistic between the two? Well, I did not feel any excitement of optimism in Musa and his camp. Instead, I sensed sorrow.

Seedy

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