Senator Teslim Folarin was in the Senate between 2003 and 2011 and served as Senate Leader in his last four years.

In this interview with the Vanguard reporter   he reviews the difficulties around him while in the senate and his plans for the governorship of his native Oyo State. Excerpts:

BY OLA AJAYI

IT is alleged that your eight years in the Senate were not impactful on the state. Do you agree?

The press has the job of educating the public to moderate expectations from senators. Who is a senator? A senator is just a mere legislator. In fact, we can say a senator is a glorified councillor. You don’t have votes, so where do you expect me to get the money to build hospitals and schools? I think you are not doing enough to educate people and they now compare a senator to governor, you cannot. You can’t even compare a senator to a local government chairman because a local government chairman has votes to spend. Having said that, you can attract projects, you can complement the efforts of the state and the local government councils. During the time I was in office, we had three health centres, one in Olode in Oluyole Local Government, one in Pade (Akinyele LG) and the other one in Oyo West. When you look at the road construction, the road network at Olubadan Estate in Egbeda Local Government, we facilitated it, we didn’t do it.

Sinking of boreholes

We told the Federal Government to come and help them do it and they did it. Over 150 boreholes were sunk, even though I don’t believe in sinking boreholes, I think that’s too petty. I believe we should move on, that’s my personal opinion.

If you look at the rehabilitation of Lagos-Ibadan road, we did a lot to get the Federal Government to do something. People don’t understand all these things, I think you also have a role to play.

Is it the media you blame or you did not make awareness for these things you claimed to have done when you were in the senate? You did not commission any project then.

I agree with you, we could have done that, but, you knew the security situation in the state at that time. There was no way the last administration would allow us to do that and that’s the reason we didn’t do it. We didn’t do it to avoid bloodshed.

You were part of the forces that ensured the defeat of PDP in the 2011 elections, why are you then trying to hide under the same ‘umbrella’ you and some chieftains of the party ‘tore’ into shreds in the last election?

I have been trying to address this issue and I will do the same now. Politics needs not be about violence. It should be about building a consensus, it is about inclusiveness, not about excluding people and people who talk about all these, like I keep saying, there are two parts to a movie. It is very convenient for them to play part two and ignore part one where Teslim Folarin was humiliated, was locked up for something I knew nothing about and I asked them the question, if they were in my shoes, what would they do? I was also the Senate Leader and I enjoyed that office, they took that ticket off me. I wasn’t allowed to participate in the primaries. I think I have addressed this issue enough, I think our people should move on.

They never said anything, it was okay, get rid of Teslim Folarin, but, now, they can’t get rid of me, I’m here. So, we have to manage each other and I believe that as a party, we should draw a line and move on.

What’s your relationship with Alao-Akala?

If you witnessed occasions where we met, you would see that we were very cordial. We greeted each other and don’t forget that he’s very much older than I, and as a Yoruba man, I have to respect him and I do that.

You just spoke about how you were maltreated by him, and how you were arraigned for the murder you said you did not know anything about, Cuts in…they didn’t take me to court, they locked me up unjustly.

Will you still support that same person who was believed to have set you up if he emerges the party’s candidate?

Absolutely, because it is a process.

How far have you gone in reconciling yourself with the opposing camp who felt you short-changed them in 2011?

I didn’t short-change anybody. They short-changed me. I was locked up, I was humiliated, they tried to bring trumped-up charges against me. Do you know what it means for a serving Senate Leader to be so treated? I don’t want to talk about it, I think the best thing is just to draw a line and move on.

You seem to be too isolated from the people you now intend to govern?

What do you mean by disconnect with the people? You have been here since morning, I have been attending to people.

I am accessible to people, lots of people are there waiting to see me, they will be here till night, I see them, they see me, I don’t know what they are talking about.

How many people have you consulted before embarking on this venture? Did you discuss it with the former governor?

Why should I tell him?

He is a leader of your party.

He is a leader and I am also a leader of the party too. A leader of a party should not be an aspirant, why should I tell him? He can’t be a leader and aspirant at the same time.

But, as a former governor?

You heard what I said. You can’t be an aspirant and be a leader, I am an aspirant, I am not a leader. You don’t expect me to go to a fellow aspirant and be telling him I want to contest where is that done?