Senator Teslim Folarin has endorsed the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State Senator Sharafadeen Alli.
He pledged his support yesterday during Alli’s visit to him in Ibadan.
Folarin who was among party leaders considered to be aggrieved assured Alli and his team that he had moved on saying other previously aggrieved leaders would join hands to deliver President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Alli and other Oyo APC candidates in the 2027 general election.
Addressing Alli and the crowd of supporters in Yoruba language he said: ‘I greet all of you. I won’t make political statement here now but will talk with you deeply. Only a bastard will be wronged and will not be angry. In the same way only a bastard will reject apologies from those who wronged him.
‘In our own approach we won’t stand here and tell you there is no problem. There is a big problem And what caused the problem? Some people don’t understand. As I am I’ve invested 26 years of my life in the ambition to be a governor. If you now hold me down and say I shouldn’t be angry that will be unrealistic. But if I see others that have not invested much getting angry I will ask them what they have invested to warrant that. People that are angry must be begged. And we must appeal to them.
‘I want to salute my elder brothers Senator Femi Lanlehin Prof. Taoheed Adedoja that are handling this reconciliation. But if they ask me to score them I will grade them 20 per cent. The reason is that the 80 per cent of persons that should agree to resolution will not agree until people like us agree. But we are looking at it and time is going. And we felt should we allow things to be completely destroyed?
‘What do we stand to gain if we allow things to collapse totally? May God preserve Engr. Idris and all he has. He did a lot to get us to where we are today. Remember four of us had a meeting at Iyaganku-myself Bayo Buhari and Olaniyan. We want to hold a similar meeting here (his residence) during which we would agree not to allow reconciliation succeed. I was abroad he was the one that sponsored the trip with the aim that if we are not at home the meeting will not hold.
‘Idris asked me to stay abroad. When I called him and said I was tired of staying abroad he said I should go to Mecca… We thank him very much. He is angry as well but if we look at how annoyed he is yet he is thinking about tomorrow. You know we have to think about tomorrow. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow. I want to appeal to you from today we are going straight to Agodi. You will notice that President Tinubu has appointed me as coordinator of Oyo State. He didn’t ask me to deliver President Bola Ahmed Tinubu only. It is all the candidates. As I was saying politics has started today. There is no way we’ll do it; we will still beg some people and they won’t agree. The way it will work in one person’s system will differ to the other person. It is not compulsory to be friends! Just be a member of the party with us. The advantage I have is that I know all the aggrieved parties in all the councils. When I am angry myself how will I not know the people we belong to the same club?
‘I plead with you all. Sometimes it is like that. Sometimes in business you lose sometimes you gain. The votes we gave Asiwaju Tinubu in 2023 we must improve on it this time. Some people are saying after we finish the presidential election we will travel. Even if we want to travel Idris won’t allow it. Anybody that knows us knows that if we want to do anything we will do it. When we were at home and they didn’t give anything last time did we die? I want to assure you this one will be different.
”I have sat down with the president. You all know my friend Senator Buhari. He also met with the president and we have told him everything.
‘The reward system in this party not just in Oyo State is very bad. When we finish working the people who did nothing are the ones who get rewarded. That will not happen again. We will not accept it.
”Our candidate Sharafadeen Alli is a politician. It was the manner in which his candidacy emerged that made some people to be aggrieved. But if we put that aside he is a politician. We too will continue to put pressure on him to ensure that you all get your rewards.
”You are the traditional politicians here and we will not allow them to discard you. The computer politicians can do their own thing while we do ours here. We will then combine our efforts to get to Agodi. By God’s grace when we get there you will all get your rewards.
‘I appeal to you because you know I do not like to fail when I take on a responsibility. The task entrusted to me has also been entrusted to all of us.’
Lagos APC targets five million votes ahead of 2027 polls
By Zainab Olufemi
Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has set a target of five million votes in the 2027 general election urging party leaders to strengthen grassroots mobilisation promote unity and improve campaign coordination.
The state APC Chairman Cornelius Ojelabi announced the target at the ongoing Lagos APC Campaign Council retreat at Eko Hotel Victoria Island Lagos with the theme: ‘The Road to the Ballot: One Team One Strategy’ which was aimed at aligning the party’s leadership and campaign structures towards achieving its electoral objectives.
Ojelabi said the party must translate its political structures and support base into electoral gains through disciplined organisation effective communication and accountability at all levels.
He said every local government Local Council Development Area (LCDA) ward and polling unit must have clearly defined responsibilities adding that party leaders would be assessed based on their contributions to electoral performance.
The chairman called for improved engagement with residents and more effective communication of government policies and achievements warning that the party must not take the loyalty of its supporters for granted.
He said achieving the five-million-vote target would require sustained grassroots engagement voter mobilisation and regular assessments of the party’s strengths and weaknesses across the state.
The Director-General of the Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) PBAT/KOH Campaign Council Musiliu Obanikoro described the retreat as an opportunity to align the party’s political vision with practical campaign strategies.
Obanikoro urged party leaders to work as a team resolve internal disagreements through constructive dialogue and place the collective interest of the party above individual ambitions.
He said differences of opinion should not undermine the APC’s common objective urging participants to engage in open discussions and develop practical solutions to challenges that could affect its electoral prospects.
The APC National Chairman Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda also called for unity warning that the party’s large membership and extensive political structures would count for little without a common purpose.
Yilwatda described Lagos as a strategic political centre because of its large voter population and national significance urging members to work towards securing victories for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat and the party’s candidates for legislative positions.
He cautioned against selective voting insisting that support for the party’s presidential candidate should extend to its governorship National Assembly and state House of Assembly candidates.
The national chairman called for reconciliation among aggrieved members urging party leaders to resolve disputes through dialogue and established party mechanisms rather than allowing personal grievances to weaken the organisation.
He also stressed the need to appoint and verify polling-unit agents ahead of the elections noting that effective mobilisation must be supported by adequate representation and preparedness at polling units.
Yilwatda urged the party to communicate government policies more effectively particularly the benefits of federal tax reforms and major infrastructure projects saying achievements must be clearly explained to Nigerians.
Governor Sanwo-Olu in his remarks urged party members to remain committed despite political challenges using the N1000 note as an analogy to illustrate that pressure does not diminish a person’s underlying value.
He praised Yilwatda’s loyalty to the party recalling his continued commitment to the APC despite previous political setbacks.
The governor urged participants to return to their communities as advocates of the party’s message and achievements calling for renewed determination and a shared sense of purpose ahead of the next electoral cycle.
The Deputy Governor of Lagos State and APC governorship candidate Dr Obafemi Hamzat emphasised the importance of measurable governance data-driven planning and sustained infrastructure development.
Hamzat cited the establishment of the Lagos State Residents Registration Agency as part of efforts to improve demographic data collection and support planning and service delivery.
He also highlighted investments in transportation water supply drainage waste management and electricity saying governance should be assessed through tangible outcomes rather than promises.
On transportation Hamzat spoke about the integration of rail bus and ferry services to improve connectivity alongside efforts to address traffic congestion and strengthen public transport infrastructure.
He also outlined initiatives to expand access to potable water improve drainage systems to mitigate flooding and enhance waste management through additional infrastructure and resource recovery.
Hamzat said reliable data economic access and opportunities for residents should remain central to the state’s development priorities urging the party to communicate government achievements clearly to the public.