By State House Communication Unit
President Dr Ernest Bai Koroma in his capacity as Chairman and Leader of the ruling All Peoples Congress (APC), has said that the late comrade Ambassador Ibrahim Bakarr Kamara fondly called Orsoya was his brother. Orsoya, he said, was a committed member of the APC. “Orsoya was a fine man with a fine heart,” he said.
The President was speaking today (Thursday February 16, 2017) during the signing of the book of condolence for his late friend, brother and comrade who passed away on February 8th, 2017, aged 64.
The laying out and signing of book of condolence ceremony which took place at the APC party headquarters along Old Railway Line, Brookfields in Freetown, continued at the Miatta Conference Centre a few blocks away from the party HQ.
President Koroma recalled that when the 2002 elections campaigning was at its height, they left Freetown for Kailahun, and the late Orsoya was one of the few people who sacrificed to go with him all the way to Kailahun town. He praised ambassador Kamara for his selflessness and commitment to the party.
President Koroma also extolled ambassador Ibrahim Kamara for the speed with which he settled into the Kuwaiti system as Ambassador of Sierra Leone. “Two major projects are being funded right now by the Kuwaiti fund all because of his efficiency as our representative to that country,” he said.
Ambassador Alhaji Osman Foday Yansaneh, Secretary General of the APC who chaired the ceremony stated that the late comrade was a tower of support for the All People’s Congress (APC) during the struggle to regain power in the 2002 and 2007 general elections.
He was a pillar of supoort, according to Alhaji Hon. Buya Kamara in his tribute to the late ambassador.
Zulaitu Cooper, on behalf of the APC Women’s Wing, said the late ambassador was a supporter of the Women’s wing at all times. “We will miss Orsoya but we will not forget him. We will miss his financial and moral support but we will not forget him,” she said almost in tears.
The president of the APC National Youth League, Bai Mahmoud Bangura, described Orsoya as a great hero as his name suggests. He noted that young people were always drawn to him for his immaculate and youthful appearance. “His face represented his heart” because he was always smiling,” Bai Mahmoud said, and added that Ambassador Ibrahim Kamara was a source of hope.
Representing the APC Veterans, comrade N’Bompa Turay pointed out that when the party was in the desert of deprivation and suffering, the late Orsoya was there for them and urged them to rise up. He encouraged the bereaved family to take heart and not be saddened.
On behalf of the family, a son of the late ambassador Junior Kamara, said the APC was above everybody, saying that it was his dad who imbibed that philosophy in him.
He recalled that when the APC won the 2012 elections, and the president announced his new cabinet, his dad’s name wasn’t among the list of appointees. His only response was that he was satisfied that the APC and his childhood friend and brother was President of the Republic of Sierra.
Other speakers including the Commissioner of NacSA, Alie Mansaray praised the late Orsoya for his humility and good naturedness. He also described Orsoya as a “shaper of lives”.
