Why I AM NOT VOTING FOR BAO.
By Wale Ojo-Lanre, Esq.
Yes—you heard me right.
I am not voting for BAO.
Go and bring soldiers. Bring the Army.
Bring Olopa.
Bring ICPC or EFCC.
You can even bring panapana
That will not change the fact.
Let me state it plainly, loudly, and publicly:
It is not BAO I am voting for
I am not voting for BAO. Yes—I, Wale Ojo-Lanre, Director-General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, declare today that I am not voting for BAO.
Why should I?
Why should I vote for that fellow from Ikogosi-Ekiti?
Who is he to be voted for ?
Tell me. Why?
Is it because he appointed me Director-General of Tourism?
Walahi, that is not the reason.
I am not voting for BAO because he is humble; humility alone does not earn votes.
I am not voting for BAO because of his intelligence
I am not voting for BAO because he is governor; power by itself deserves no ballot.
To me, BAO is an ordinary human being—as common as you, as common as me.
So no, I am not voting for BAO the man.
I am voting for something far bigger than a man.!
I am voting for performance.
I am voting for measurable governance, not personality; for outcomes, not optics; for institutions, not noise.
I am voting for a body of work that speaks quietly but firmly, without hysteria, without blackmail, without propaganda.
Consider this: Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji achieved what no governor before him achieved in Ekiti State. He united all former governors—men of different temperaments, histories, and political leanings—into one moral and developmental orbit focused on Ekiti’s progress.
Not by coercion.
Not by ego.
Not by political blackmail.
But by humility, consultation, and respect.
For the first time in our history, former governors are no longer liabilities; they are no longer sworn enemies , they are assets—thinking Ekiti, dreaming Ekiti, defending Ekiti together. Apparently, in some quarters, that is now a crime.
Then there is peace—not the accidental kind, but peace as a deliberate policy choice. For the first time in Ekiti’s political history, party primaries were conducted without bitterness, without thuggery, without vandalisation, and without bloodshed. No arson. No street warfare. No families plunged into mourning in the name of ambition. Ekiti today is peaceful, serene, and stable—conducive for living, working, and investing.
A governor who understands that democracy must not be fertilised with blood? Unforgivable—according to merchants of chaos.
And then, quietly but profoundly, comes inclusion. Not tokenism. Not cosmetics. Not propaganda feminism. But deliberate, visible, structural gender balance at the highest levels of governance.
Look at Ekiti today: a woman as Deputy Governor; a woman as Deputy Speaker; a woman as Head of Service; a woman as Secretary to the State Government; a woman as Accountant-General. Hàbà! This is not coincidence. This is not political correctness. This is leadership that understands that societies grow faster when women are not spectators but decision-makers, and that competence does not fear gender.
The youth, too, are not treated as rhetorical decorations. Not the tired chant of “leaders of tomorrow,” but real empowerment—appointments, opportunities, access, responsibility. Young people are not merely mobilised; they are trusted. They are not applauded; they are positioned. Skills development, enterprise support, innovation spaces, and deliberate youth inclusion in governance and administration define a system preparing itself for continuity, not collapse.
Even those most governments remember only during campaigns are not forgotten. Persons with special needs are not pitied; they are included. Retirees are not abandoned; pensions are paid and dignity restored. The elderly are not treated as afterthoughts.
This is governance that recognises human worth beyond productivity and political usefulness.
Then comes performance—quiet, stubborn, and stupendous. Roads appear without drumbeats.
The Ekiti Airport is not just built; it is running and effective. I personally watched Congressman Bimbo Daramola and others alight from a commercial flight on Ekiti soil.
I saw the Director-General of the National Space Research and Development Agency, Dr. Matthew Adepoju, who deliberately created time to visit Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort—a site concessioned by Governor Oyebanji to Glocient Hospitality and now widely regarded as one of the finest resorts in Nigeria. Hospitals are upgraded without propaganda. Independent Power Projects supply electricity without drama. Salaries and pensions are paid without fanfare. Urban renewal advances steadily. Transportation—air and ground—is approached strategically. Education stabilises. Agriculture is treated as an economic value chain. Tourism, arts, and culture are repositioned as identity-driven economies. Human capital development is deliberate, not rhetorical.
Worst of all—for those who thrive on disorder—he empowers people without demanding political genuflection. How irritating. He allows professionals to work. He respects institutions. He governs without hysteria.
Even women empowerment has moved beyond ceremony. Through the quiet but impactful interventions of Her Excellency, Prof. Olayemi Oyebanji, dignity-driven programmes, targeted empowerment, and humane advocacy have touched real lives. Not flamboyance. Not noise. Just substance. Behind intentional governance is often a partner who understands that power must heal, not intimidate.
So who would refuse to vote for this?
Only cynics who profit from chaos.
Only political miscreants who lose relevance when governance works.
Only intellectual frauds allergic to results.
Only enemies of Ekiti’s progress.
As for me—please don’t mind me. I, Wale Ojo-Lanre, and the entire Wale Ojo-Lanre Clan of Usi-Ekiti, with clear conscience and sound mind, will cast our votes—without hesitation—for His Excellency, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji.
Because this is not loyalty. This is not sentiment. This is reasoned voting. BAOISM is not a slogan; it is a standard—governance without noise, leadership without ego, performance without apology, and politics without blood.
I am not voting for BAO the man. I am voting for BAO the performer. I am voting for the spirit of governance he represents.
I am voting for stupendous, verifiable performance.
Are you?
Good morning.
…..I am in Usi Ekiti come and beat me