Dr. Adedeji Adeleke, billionaire businessman and father of Afrobeats star Davido, has publicly addressed the long-running paternity controversy involving his son, insisting that multiple DNA tests have confirmed that the 12-year-old girl at the centre of the dispute, Anuoluwapo Michelle, is not Davido’s child.
Declaring that he could not remain silent while his son’s name was being “dragged through the mud,” Dr. Adeleke said his intervention was driven by a desire to protect Davido from what he described as false and unjustifiable allegations.
In a viral video, the patriarch disclosed that he personally sponsored the education of both Anu and her mother for years, despite knowing the child was not his granddaughter. According to him, the support, which included paying school fees and offering the mother a scholarship with a monthly salary at his institution, was extended purely out of compassion.
“I have been paying Anu’s school fees and taking care of her since 2014. The mother was given a scholarship in my school with a salary every month. I did all of these out of love because they were suffering, even though I knew Anu was not my granddaughter,” Dr. Adeleke stated.
He further revealed that he had already undergone extensive DNA testing without Davido’s knowledge in an effort to resolve the matter quietly and shield his son from public controversy. Dr. Adeleke added that he already has 14 grandchildren and would have welcomed another if paternity had been established.
Recounting how the family first became aware of the child in 2014, Dr. Adeleke said he received a DHL package containing photographs allegedly linking Davido to the child, along with a birth certificate bearing the names “Adeleke David” and “Adeleke Ayomide” as parents. The unusual naming, he explained, raised red flags and prompted further investigation.
Beyond the paternity issue, Dr. Adeleke also addressed misinformation surrounding Davido’s late mother, clarifying that she died after childbirth and disputing claims circulated by a popular blogger about her medical history and final moments abroad.
Davido has since expressed appreciation for his father’s public support. Sharing a photograph of them together on social media, the singer wrote: “Thank you my loving Father.”
However, the controversy remains unresolved, as Anu’s mother has pushed back against Dr. Adeleke’s claims. In a statement released on Wednesday, she accused the Adeleke family of intimidation and manipulation, denying that additional DNA tests were conducted in 2020. She also alleged that her sister had been in contact with Dr. Adeleke since the COVID-19 pandemic without her knowledge, a development she described as shocking and distressing.
The unfolding dispute continues to draw public attention, highlighting the complexities of family, fame and accountability in high-profile celebrity controversies.
