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For decades, he was the face of one of Nigeria’s most beloved sitcoms. But now, Abiodun Ayoyinka—known to millions as the balding, eccentric “Papa Ajasco”—has announced he is starting over.

In a video posted to his Instagram page on Saturday, the veteran entertainer formally introduced his new stage name: Bondu Alaska.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, good morning Nigerians. My name is Bondu Alaska. The one and only,” the actor declared in the viral clip. He expressed gratitude for the public support he received following a recent interview in which he claimed to be struggling financially, adding: “I’m a new person now, and I promise that I will not let you down.”

A strategic exit

The rebrand appears to be a calculated response to a public and increasingly messy dispute over the “Papa Ajasco” brand.

The character was created by Wale Adenuga Productions (WAP), and the show became a staple of Nigerian household entertainment starting in the late 1990s. However, recent weeks have seen a public exchange between Ayoyinka and the show’s founder, Wale Adenuga, regarding restrictions on how the actor could use the iconic persona outside of official WAP projects.

Mr. Adenuga recently described Ayoyinka’s claims of being “broke” as “misleading” and “untrue,” asserting that the actor had been well-compensated over the years, including being provided with several vehicles. While Adenuga clarified that actors were free to take independent jobs, he emphasized that the specific “Papa Ajasco” brand must be protected from “inappropriate usage.”

‘NEPA is still NEPA’

Despite the actor’s clean break—which included changing his social media handles to @bondualaska_ —many Nigerians are finding it difficult to separate the man from the legend.

Fans responded to the announcement with a mix of humour and stubborn nostalgia. One follower noted that to the Nigerian public, some names are simply permanent: “You are Papa Ajasco, not Bondu Alaska. We’ll help you spread [the original name] to the world.”

Another fan compared the name change to Nigeria’s national power utility, which many still call by its old acronym despite several rebrands: “Nothing you want to tell us… because NEPA is still NEPA.”

The road ahead

By stepping away from the character that made him a household name, Ayoyinka is attempting a rare feat in the Nigerian entertainment industry: transitioning from a “typecast” legacy character to a solo brand.

Whether “Bondu Alaska” can capture the same magic as the man with the polka-dot shirt and the famous “Ajasco” dance remains to be seen, but the veteran actor seems determined to move into this new chapter with his head held high.