President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday met with former Senate Leader Teslim Folarin at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, in what appears to be part of efforts to rally key stakeholders behind the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Sharafadeen Alli.

The meeting, according to a source close to Folarin, was aimed at strengthening party unity and resolving lingering disagreements within the Oyo APC ahead of the February 2027 governorship election.

Folarin, who represented Oyo Central Senatorial District in the Senate, was the APC’s candidate in the 2023 governorship election but lost to incumbent Governor Seyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic Party.

The emergence of Alli as the APC’s 2027 candidate effectively ended Folarin’s bid for the ticket, as he did not participate in the party’s primary process that produced Alli.

Alli’s emergence followed months of consultations among party leaders and stakeholders, who endorsed him as the party’s consensus candidate. He was presented alongside his running mate, Adesoji Adedeji, at a ceremony in Ibadan on July 2.

The process, however, generated controversy among some aspirants, including former Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu, who contested the primary process and questioned claims that a consensus arrangement had been reached.

Adelabu urged party members to await an official declaration from the APC leadership, while insisting that the national leadership should formally announce the outcome of the primary.

Alli was reported to have defeated Adelabu and other aspirants, including former Deputy Governor Rauf Olaniyan, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, Akeem Agbaje and Oyedele Alao. A group of aggrieved aspirants, known as the G5, also opposed his emergence and called for the party to address their concerns.

The divisions within the party have prompted reconciliation efforts, with APC leaders warning that internal disagreements could weaken the party’s chances of defeating the PDP, which has controlled Oyo State since 2019.

The source said Tinubu’s engagement with Folarin was significant because of his influence within the party and his role as the APC’s 2023 governorship candidate. According to the source, the President assured Folarin that his supporters would be considered in the party’s political arrangements at both state and federal levels.

Folarin is expected to meet with his supporters following the discussion with the President to brief them on the outcome.

The APC is seeking to reclaim Oyo State in 2027 after losing the governorship election to Makinde in 2019 and failing to unseat him in 2023.

Supporters of Alli have described him as a candidate capable of uniting the party and expanding its appeal across the state’s political divides.