New dawn for Alowoloke as Sowole emerges first Baale

Great-grand son of the founder of over 200-year-old community, Mosafejo Alowoloke, has emerged as the first Baale of the rural area, in Obafemi Owode Local Council, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

The coronation of the newly installed Baale, Chief Rasheed Ayinla Sowole, was held recently at G.R.A, Ibara Housing, Abeokuta. The traditional kingmakers of Oba town, led by former Ogunn State Governor and High Chief, Olusegun Osoba performed the coronation.

Alowoloke is among the vast community of a people known as Oba, with Ago-Oba as their headquarter or central home in the heart of cosmopolitan Abeokuta. As the Egba are known to have homes in city and rural areas, which share similar names, ancestrally, Alowoloke is also a farmland settlement among the vast communities of the Oba people, outskirts of Abeokuta, in Obafemi Owode Local Council.

For the new Baale, Sowole, he got two chieftaincy certificates for the same Alowoloke leadership title. The first, dated June 4, 2024, was signed by His Royal Highness, Alake and Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, Oba Gbadebo Okunenu IV. The second certificate was signed by Oluwo Oba, Odofin Oba, Aro Oba, and Apena Oba. While the first certificate signed by Alake approves Chief Rasheed Ayinla Sowole of Aiyemi Compound, Ago Oba as Baale of Alowoloke, the second, signed by the Chieftaincy Council of Ago Oba captures the conferment of the title.

At the same coronation, six other Baales were issued certificates and given paraphernalia of offices. Idowu Odesanya Fasesan of Ayiwere, Wasiu Ewuoso of Labiyede, Chief Musiliu Egbewunmi of Orile Oba, Adeniregun of Maga, among others were also coronated as Baales.

Who are the Alowoloke family? The family tree shows that Sowole’s great-grandfather, Sosanya Alowoloke bi Oyinbo, founded Mosafejoọ Alowoloke Village and Farmlands. Sosanya Alowoloke derived his second name from being a philanthropist, in Ago-Oba town. From his father, Aiyemi’s house, Sosanya moved uphill to a place known as Oke-Ikanna where he had his stable. Whenever there was need to get money for anything for the community, he would always say ‘E je ki n’lo s’oke lo mu owo (I want to go and get money from my uphill house). Since then he was given the alias Alowoloke bi Oyinbo.

Alowoloke’s farmlands and forests are as wide and long as stretching to a place known as Odo-Ore (river) and Oke-Ore. Members of Alowoloke family are known as Omo-Ore (children of Ore River) as parts of their oriki (eulogy). Alowoloke village, farmlands and forests are bordered by villages such as Igbomekun, Segi, Igbehin, Jagun and Itoku.

The Founder, Sosanya Alowoloke, was also a prominent member of traditional community leaders of Ago-Oba in his lifetime. And when he died at roughly over 80 years of age, his son, Lawani Sosanya Sowole later took over his position as member of the traditional leaders of Ago-Oba. Lawani died in 1954.

Baale Sowole is the grandson of Lawani who begot Shittu. The father of the new Baale, Shittu, died in 1994, at his Bariga, Lagos home, aged 76. Other siblings of Shittu included Ashabi, Amusa, Busari, Rabiat, Nimota, Rahim, Idayat and Musilibat (all lates) in that order.

Osoba used the coronation event to caution people on the issues of the vacant stool of Olu of Kobape. He also advised on the need for the village heads to protect their farmlands from being sold by fraudulent individuals. Osoba categorically affirmed that all indigenes, irrespective of their ancestral villages, are entitled to the position of Olu of Kobape. He warned against spreading unconfirmed information that some kingmakers are planning to bend rules and defy the traditional process of selection for the new Olu of Kobape . He told the coronation gathering to disregard reports spreading round that he (Osoba) was planning to impose a candidate on them as king.

Expressing his gratitude to the entire Alowoloke Descendants Family for choosing him to be the Baale, Chief Sowole assured the community that he will not disappoint them. “I am grateful to the Alowoloke family for puting my name forward as the preferred choice of Baale, of which my leadership of the community will be a blessing to everyone,” Sowole said during a reception after the coronation. “I also thanked the kingmakers, particularly our great leader and father, Chief Olusegun Osoba whose leadership of the entire Oba kingmakers has been exceptionally beneficial to the community.”

Speaking on the works ahead for the new Baale, spokesperson for Alowoloke Descendants Family, Idris Adelakun said the community is blessed with vast lands that need to be developed. Adelakun noted that Baale Sowole “is using the opportunity of the coronation to inform people, particularly investors to come and invest in Alowoloke.”

According to Adelakun, already, quite a number of individuals and groups have shown interest in the areas with plans of building residential facilities and factories in Alowoloke. “We have vast lands that are just few minutes drive off the Abeokuta-Sagamu Expressway, with potentials such as being close to a higher institution like Moshood Abiola Polytechnic,” Adelakun explained.

For Alowoloke Descendants’ Family Alhaji Idris Adelakun.