Folarin Kolawole Teslim
256,685 votes (28.86%)
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Folarin Kolawole Teslim is a Nigerian politician who contested the 2023 Gubernatorial Elections as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in Oyo. They received 257K votes (28.86%).
Biography
Teslim Kolawole Folarin (born 30 October 1963) is a Nigerian politician, he was the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Oyo State for the 2023 gubernatorial election which he lost to the incumbent governor Seyi Makinde. He previously served as the senator representing Oyo Central senatorial district from 2003 to 2011; and from 2019 to 2023.
Teslim Kolawole Folarin was born on 30 October 1963, to Alhaji and Alhaja Hamzat Folarin. He stemmed from Baale House in Oja Igbo area of Ibadan North-East Local Government area of Oyo State. Folarin is the Head (Mogaji) of his family House and a ranked traditional Chief in Ibadanland. He is the Laguna Olubadan of Ibadanland.
Folarin attended primary school in Lagos; his secondary education was completed at Nigeria's premier secondary school, Methodist Boys' High School, Lagos. Folarin holds a B.Sc. (Hons) degree in political science from the University of Ibadan and a diploma degree from Harvard University, USA.
He spent some years gathering valuable civil service experience in the UK, including management roles at the Department of Trade in London before returning to Nigeria in 2002. Folarin performed his obligatory NYSC tenure in Kaduna and joined politics thereafter.
Folarin contested and won the senatorial seat to represent Oyo Central in 2003 at the age of 39 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and was re-elected for a second term in 2007 on the same party’s platform.
Folarin served as the Leader of the Senate and was appointed to committees like Business & Rules, Marines, Transport, Education, Power Supply, and Water Resources. He was involved in the Power probe in 2008. As Leader of the Senate, he led debates on Executive Bills and sponsored several private bills, including the Insurance Act and Armed Forces Pension Act.
Folarin won the gubernatorial ticket of the PDP in 2014 but lost to incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi of the All Progressives Congress. He defected to APC in December 2017 and was elected as APC’s senatorial candidate for Oyo Central in September 2018. He won the senatorial position in the 2019 election, defeating incumbent Senator Monsurat Sunmonu.
In 2011, Folarin was charged with the murder of trade union activist Lateef Salako. He contested the 2023 Oyo State gubernatorial election on the APC platform but lost to incumbent Governor Seyi Makinde of the PDP. He was married to Barr. Angela Folarin until her death in 2022, and they had children.
Party Positions
Policy positions from the All Progressives Congress (APC) party manifesto.
Security & Defense
Enhances compensation, medical care, housing support, scholarships, stipends, and health insurance for military personnel injured in duty and their families.
Governance & Reform
Commits to amending Nigeria’s governance architecture through constitutional review and collaboration with the National Assembly and State Governments to grant States greater autonomy over critical matters like crime prevention, prisons, stamp duties, and taxation.
Economy & Trade
Reforms the Federal Budgetary Methodology to move away from oil revenue dependence and base spending on projected growth, establishing an inflationary ceiling to optimize fiscal policy without causing excessive inflation.
Infrastructure
Launches a National Infrastructure Campaign to modernize national infrastructure by hiring millions of unemployed Nigerians through the fiscal flexibility gained from reforming budgetary methodology.
Agriculture
Will encourage local farmers to form farm cooperatives, enabling them to pool resources for modern farming equipment, fertiliser, and access priority government agricultural assistance programs (extension services), with tax breaks and credits.
Environment & Climate
Will **reduce Nigeria’s gas flaring** by removing it from the top 10 countries with highest flares, aiming to maximize sector benefits while eliminating environmental harm.
Anti-corruption
Curb reliance on imported goods via luxury taxes, higher tariffs, and processing fees while incentivizing local manufacturing with tax credits/rebates.
Enterprise grant support
Provides tax credits, holidays, and reduced interest rate loans for businesses that hire a specified percentage of youth in their workforce and offer on-the-job training.
Energy
Will increase Nigeria’s domestic crude oil production to **2.6 million barrels per day by 2027** and **4 million barrels per day by 2030**, while implementing a Special Enforcement and Monitoring Unit to deter theft, vandalism, and pipeline breaches using drones and aerial surveillance.
Education
Introduces a new management system for federally funded primary and secondary schools via Boards of Education, reserving community representation in decision-making.
Healthcare
Will strengthen primary healthcare infrastructure with incentive schemes, counterpart funding programs, and grassroots preventative care (vaccinations, cancer screening, blood pressure monitoring) in collaboration with state/local governments.
Technology & Digital
Establishment of an advisory committee to review and reform regulatory frameworks for blockchain technology and virtual asset services.
Reliefs and scholarships
Provides **conditional income support** to very poor households, tied to human capital development goals like high-school attendance, healthcare, and nutrition.
Follow the 2027 race
Who declares, who drops out, who switches party: sourced, not speculation.
Sources
Photo, State of Origin: Wikipedia ↗
Date of Birth: INEC ↗
Gender, Qualifications, Running Mate: INEC ↗