Jale Baba

Who is Jale Baba?

Jale Baba in Lautoka is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua Party, or SDL. He was General Secretary and more recently National Director of the party, but relinquished this post on 1 January 2006 in order to take charge of the campaign for the general election to be held from 6–13 May.

In his party role, he worked aggressively to consolidate his party's support among indigenous Fijians, while attempting with little success to make inroads into the Indo-Fijian electorate. At the previous election held in 2001, the SDL received barely one percent of the vote in the seven contested communal constituencies reserved for citizens of Indian descent, a figure that only marginally improved in 2006. He also made a token bid for the Ba Open Constituency for the SDL, but garnered only 60 votes. On 15 June 2006, Baba announced his resignation from his party post.