FEATURES
TUESDAY, JUNE 17, 2014
NEW TELEGRAPH
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ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES EDITOR
abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline.com otuntise@yahoo.co.uk
Ogundeji
Ayantokun
Tobacco leafs
Tobacco cultivation: Endless toil, pains
A
fter working tirelessly for over 20 years as a tobacco farmer, one would have expected Pa Gabriel Ayantokun to be living a comfortable life.
But today, the septuagenarian is living in penury. He is struggling to make ends meet at a time he ought to be resting and enjoying the last phase of his earthly journey. Ayantokun, now is in his early 70s, is one of the retired tobacco farmers in Igbo-Ijaye in Itesiwaju Local Government Area of Oyo State. Despite devoting over 20 years of his life to tobacco cultivation, he seems not to be satisfied with his adventure. The man, according to him, has nothing to show for his long years of labour. Narrating his ordeal to New Telegraph at his village in IgboIjaye, Ayantokun, said that: “I spent over 20 years as tobacco farmer and I left it because my children told me to stop. “We did a lot of hard work. Farming was so stressful in those
While some say they have nothing for cultivating tobacco for many decades, relatively young farmers believe tobacco firm can make it rewarding, reports TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE days because there was nothing like all the modern farming equipment that people are using today. “As a tobacco farmer for many years, there is nothing meaningful I can point to. There is nothing concrete that I can lay my hands on as dividends of my long years of working as a tobacco farmer. “In those days, we do face fire for many years while turning the tobacco leafs to final product. It made people to look older more than their age. It is when I discovered that there was no gain in the venture that I abandoned it. “There was no gain in the business in those days because of the scale we use in selling the final product. It is now almost 10 years that I have left it. But today, the situation is better and people seem to be getting profit from the
sales.” Asked whether he will like to go back to tobacco farming, Ayantokun said it was no longer possible. He said: “If I go back to tobacco farming, I will die unless someone can assure me he will be giving me regular injections and drugs that will make me look energetic and fresh. But without that, I can never go back to tobacco farming. I can plant cassava but I cannot do tobacco farming. I am now into cassava family. My children are the ones providing the money for me to farm.” The plight of Ayantokun is the reflection of the situation of many tobacco farmers. Many people believe that tobacco farmers in Oke-Ogun axis of Oyo State are happy and comfortable with what they do.
But a visit to the area and interaction with the farmers as well as evaluation of their lifestyle clearly show that they are not enjoying tobacco cultivation. New Telegraph visits to villages like Kamu, Baba Ode, IgboIjaye and environs, show that only a few of tobacco farmers are living relatively comfortable lives. Many of them are living in abject poverty despite working assiduously. Corroborating Ayantokun’s views, 70-year-old Isaiah Ogundeji in Ipako village, who is also a retired tobacco farmer, noted that the venture is not lucrative. He said: “We don’t plant tobacco again in this area because government has banned tobacco. If you look around, you will notice that many of the barns have been destroyed. Tobacco business is no longer lucrative and that is why many people are not doing it in this area again.” Investigation by New TeleC O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 4 2