Why I Changed My Name – Yayi

By Femi Ogundele, Mowe

The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Ogun 2027 governorship election, Senator Solomon Adeola popularly known as YAYI said he changed his name from Sulaimon Ogunleye to Solomon Adeola after converting from Islam to Christianity.

Senator Adeola YAYI’s media aide, Kayode Odunaro, disclosed this during  an exclusive interview with Punch on Saturday.

According to him, there was nothing unusual about Adeola changing his name, insisting that the senator had done so years before venturing into politics.

Recall that  former Ijebu East Local Government chairman, Wale Adedayo, recently alleged that Adeola was originally known as Sulaimon Ogunleye and was from Ekiti State.

Adeola subsequently demanded that Adedayo and others who made similar claims provide evidence or face legal action.

Odunaro said Adeola was born into a Muslim family and adopted the name Solomon after becoming a Christian.

His words: “Many people at some point in life have had cause to change their names. Even the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, once changed his name. His original name wasn’t Atiku Abubakar.

“So, that is not an issue, and the senator has changed his name since he was at The Guardian. He was Sulaimon Ogunleye, but changing his religion from Islam to Christianity made him change his name.

“Solomon is the biblical name for Sulaimon. His father’s name is Ogunleye and Adeola. He only chose Adeola as his surname,” Odunaro said.