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.

Agriculture

Launches the Irrigate Nigeria Project as a public-private partnership to develop small-scale irrigation and water catchment systems using modern technology to boost agricultural productivity.

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Security & Defense

Will deploy modern aerial surveillance and advanced technology to monitor and deter intrusions into oil pipelines, power stations, and other critical national infrastructure in real time.

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Environment & Climate

Accelerates the environmental cleanup and re-establishment of fisheries and profitable aquacultural activities in the Niger-Delta region to counter violent extremism and poverty-driven disaffection.

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Economy & Trade

Will implement the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and additional favorable policies to attract investment in deep-water assets within 6 months, including encouraging signature bonus negotiations and royalty reliefs.

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Infrastructure

Creates regional industrial hubs in specific zones (North West, North East, South East, South South, South West, North Central) to focus on labor-intensive manufacturing, with tailored investments (e.g., textiles, dry ports, glass, pottery, solid minerals, regulated mining).

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Enterprise grant support

Work with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to simplify loan processes for commercial banks, mandate federally owned banks to provide low-cost loans to youth-led enterprises, and expand business incubation centers to support youth innovation.

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Energy

Will mandate gas metering equipment on all facilities where gas flaring occurs within 6 months and establish a special enforcement unit to monitor compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) on gas flaring reduction, with non-compliance leading to financial penalties for affected communities.

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Governance & Reform

Reserve at least 3 cabinet positions for individuals under 40 and 6 more positions for members under the age of 40, and mandate that at least 20% of political appointments to Ministries/Dangomas (MDAs) be reserved for individuals under 40.

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Education

Raises the priority of addressing out-of-school children, establishes a task force to review and strengthen programs like school feeding, and aims to reduce disaffected youth recruitment by violent groups.

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Healthcare

Will establish a network of upgraded, equipped, and staffed general hospitals in every Local Government Area, tertiary facilities in each State, and world-class specialist hospitals in each geo-political zone to improve healthcare accessibility and quality.

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Technology & Digital

Supports the development of MSMEs through partnerships with fintech players to expand access to capital and business development services.

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Reliefs and scholarships

Commits to a conditional income support program requiring recipients to meet human capital goals (school attendance, healthcare, nutrition) in exchange for payments.

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