The President of Ogun State Council of Baales, Chief Tunji Falola has disclosed that the Baales have decided to support Senator Yayi’s governorship ambition based on his support to them since over four years ago.
They also noted his developmental and infrastructural drives across the State.
Falola said Senator Adeola has been so kind to them, since their paths crossed, saying that he treated them well when they first met with him.
The President who made this known in an interview with newsmen on Friday at his office in Abeokuta, the State capital , said the APC governorship candidate has been kind to them and they will be ingrates if they failed to support his ambition.
His words: “Long before now, at least about five years ago, we came to know Distinguished Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly called YAYI. It wasn’t a period for elections. It wasn’t a period for campaigns when we met. I think it all started with an invitation he sent to me to attend his birthday programme at Ilaro. When I was going, I went with some of my Baales. There and then, we were surprised by the way he treated us, considering it was the first time we were meeting.
“I just mentioned to him, ‘Senator, thank you very much. We appreciate this invitation. We appreciate this occasion, being the first one when we are getting to know you.’
I asked him, ‘Can I just mention one or two problems Baales have in the state?’
He said, ‘Why not?’ Although it wasn’t the proper sitting arrangement and time was limited, he still said, ‘Go ahead.’ I told him, ‘We, the Baales, have been asking the government to please pay us at least ₦5,000.’ He asked, ‘So they have been paying?’ I said, ‘Not yet.’ He replied, ‘Okay, we shall see.’
“A few hours later, that same day, somebody came to me and asked for my account details, and I gave them. Right there, the man sent some money to us and said, ‘Please, give this to your Baales who attended the programme.’ After that, we started hearing about a lot of infrastructural projects he was doing. Some roads were rehabilitated, he started building schools.
Falola also maintained that they also developed interest in him because of his developmental programmes, adding that he is not yet a governor but he is performing as one.
“This man was has done so many things. We became interested in him. We became friends. All along, we were watching the developmental programmes this man had been carrying out here and there. In fact, there was a time he invited us to another programme at Ilaro, where he distributed materials to tailors, students, and all types of people.That’s how we became friends.
When we later heard that he had expressed interest in the governorship position of Ogun State, we said to ourselves that if this man could become governor, he would definitely be able to do a lot of things for the indigent people. That’s how we became friends.
“I mentioned at several fora where we Bales had been meeting, ‘Baales, suppose this man says he wants to become our governor, what would be your reaction?’
They all shouted, ‘Yes, we shall follow him.’
That was how we started, and we began planning for how we could realize the goal.
“We didn’t want to hide our feelings. That’s why I, on behalf of the Bales, came out to tell the people, ‘Well, this is our man, and we are following him.
He said that at the recent meeting with him, he made four cardinal requests which are salary structure for Baales, Secretariat and bus.
“I mentioned four cardinal requests.
Number one is: please, we want a salary structure for Bales—a decent salary structure for Baales. Call it any name, but we want a proper scheme, whatever it may be called, with a fixed payment that will go round all Bales. It should not be based on whether this is an Ijebu man or this is an Egba man or whatever. Let it cut across the entire state. Even if it is ₦2,000 or ₦5,000, just make sure every Baale in the state gets it. Secondly, we are a body, an association of over 3,000 members now. We are ready to support whichever government is in power. For us to do that effectively, we must have a place a Secretariat for the Baales. Let the chairman be there, the secretary, the treasurer. From there, we can hold our meetings.
“As it is now, we hold our meetings every month, and we move from one local government to another. So, if this happens, please give us a place where we can meet as an association, as a government-related body. We are an agency of government. We do a lot on behalf of the government. That’s why we are asking for that.
“Definitely, we also asked for transportation. As it is now, Bales are not paid salaries, so we use our own money to attend meetings all over the state, moving from one local government to another. That’s why we asked for it.” He added
He also commended the current administration of Prince Dr Dapo Abiodun for prioritizing the welfare of all Baales in the State.
“That’s a wonderful government. It has been a wonderful government. Since the inception of our association in the state, we have been making several requests. Governor Dapo Abiodun surprised us on December 5, 2022, during our “Oko Ilu Day” celebration. We invited him and presented our requests.That was the first time any government in Ogun State publicly announced that Baales in Ogun State would receive a monthly stipend of ₦10,000 each. Many people dismissed it as a political statement.
However, in February 2023, Prince Dapo Abiodun began the payment of the ₦10,000 monthly stipend to every registered Baales in the state. At that time, we had 1,558 registered Baales, and I believe the government’s calculation was based on that figure. At ₦10,000 per person, it amounted to over ₦15 million every month. But unfortunately, that money didn’t circulate” he concluded
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