With barely five days to the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) elective congress, the two presidential candidates have pledged to support each other after the election.

"If I lose the election, I will join the winner to develop football in the country to another level," Dr. Foday Bangso Bangura said.

On the other hand, the incumbent SLFA president, Nahim Khadi said: "I am ready to serve Sierra Leone football. Even if I lose the election, nobody will send me out of Salone football. I will work with Bangso for the good of the game." The two aspirants made these pledges before stakeholders during last Friday's consultative meeting after Deputy Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Algasimu Jah called for sincerity and unity among football leaders in the country.

In his address, sports minister, Dr. Minkailu Bah said if all the leaders work as a family, the challenges facing the game can be easily addressed.

Dr. Bah said some of the challenges can be traced to the SLFA constitution regarding membership categories, criteria for election of candidates for three elective posts and also the role and responsibilities of the regional association and the executive committee.

"Football cannot progress with all these challenges which I am sure you all aware of but choose to ignore, most likely because of polarization the association," he said.

He later explained the roles and responsibilities of the football secretariat vis-à-vis that of the statutory standing committee and the management of the association's financial and other resources, in support of the local competition.