- Tinubu Meets Teslim Folarin as APC Moves to Reconcile Oyo Stakeholders
- President reportedly assures Folarin supporters of inclusion in future political arrangements.
- APC intensifies reconciliation efforts after controversial Oyo governorship candidate selection.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has met with former Senate Leader and former Oyo State governorship candidate, Teslim Folarin, in what appears to be an effort to strengthen unity within the All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2027 governorship election in the state.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the meeting was held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja and is believed to be part of ongoing reconciliation efforts aimed at rallying key party stakeholders behind the APC governorship candidate, Senator Sharafadeen Alli.
A source close to Folarin told The PUNCH that the meeting was part of broader efforts by Tinubu and the party leadership to resolve lingering disagreements within the Oyo APC following the party’s governorship primary.
Folarin, who represented Oyo Central Senatorial District in the Senate, was the APC governorship candidate in the 2023 election but lost to Governor Seyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic Party.
His ambition to contest the 2027 governorship election ended after the APC adopted Alli as its candidate, leading him to withdraw from the primary process.
According to the source, Tinubu’s meeting with Folarin was aimed at securing his support and that of his political structure ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
The source also disclosed that the President assured Folarin that his supporters would not be sidelined in future political appointments and party arrangements at both the state and federal levels.
Folarin is expected to meet with his supporters in the coming days to brief them on the outcome of his discussions with the President, the source added.
The source described Folarin as a critical stakeholder whose support would be important to the APC’s chances of reclaiming Oyo State in 2027.
Alli emerged as the APC governorship candidate after a keenly contested selection process that attracted interest from several leading aspirants, including former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.
He was formally presented alongside his running mate, Adesoji Adedeji, in Ibadan on July 2 after party leaders endorsed him as the consensus candidate following a series of consultations.
However, the process generated controversy, with Adelabu insisting at the time that the APC national leadership had not officially announced the outcome of the primary.
Other aspirants, including former Deputy Governor Rauf Olaniyan, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, Akeem Agbaje and Oyedele Alao, also contested the party’s governorship ticket.
A group of aggrieved aspirants known as the G5 also protested Alli’s emergence and called on the party leadership to address their grievances.
The latest meeting between Tinubu and Folarin is expected to form part of the APC’s broader efforts to reconcile aggrieved members and strengthen the party ahead of the 2027 Oyo State governorship election.
