senator senator Teslim Kolawale Folarin Contact information

Teslim Kolawole Folarin OFR, a Nigerian politician, is currently the senator representing Oyo Central senatorial district in the 9th National Assembly. He is also the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Oyo State for the 2023 gubernatorial election.

Folarin was born in October 1963 and is the Head (Mogaji) of his family House and a ranked traditional Chief in Ibadanland. He attended primary school in Lagos and completed his secondary education at Nigeria’s premier secondary school, Methodist Boys High School. Folarin holds a B.Sc. (Hons) degree in political science from the University of Ibadan and a diploma degree from Harvard University, USA. He gained valuable civil service experience in the UK, including management roles at the Department of Trade in London before returning to Nigeria in 2002.

Folarin’s political career began when he contested and won the senatorial seat to represent Oyo Central in 2003 on the platform of the PDP. He was re-elected for a second term in 2007 on the same platform and remains the only legislator in Oyo State who has served two terms at the Senate. Folarin was appointed Leader of the Senate and also served on the Senate Committee on Business & Rules, Marines, and Transport. He led debates on all Executives Bills and sponsored several private Bills himself, including the Insurance Act and Armed Forces Pension Act.

Folarin won the gubernatorial ticket of his party, PDP, in 2014, but lost the election to the incumbent Governor Senator Abiola Ajimobi of the All Progressive Congress. He defected to the opposition party, All Progressive Congress in December 2017, and was elected as the APC Oyo South senatorial candidate in September 2018. Folarin won the senatorial position in the 2019 Oyo central senatorial district election, defeating the incumbent senator, Mrs. Monsurat Sunmonu, and other candidates. He is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content in the 9th Senate and sits on several other committees, including National Intelligence, INEC, Interparliamentary, Constitutional Review, Finance, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), and Airforce.

Folarin contested during the March 2023 Oyo State gubernatorial election on the platform of All Progressive Congress but lost to the incumbent Governor Seyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He is married to Barr. Angela Folarin and has children.