Anadolu Agency's Bilal Erdoğan change becomes a talking point

Bilal Erdoğan, son of President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, continues to participate in programs and make statements following recent claims regarding the future of the AKP.

Anadolu Agency has made a notable change regarding Bilal Erdoğan. The agency, which previously used the name "Bilal Erdoğan" in its reports, has this time opted for the name 'Necmeddin Bilal Erdoğan'.

In Anadolu Agency's report on Memur-Sen's 'Turkic World Academy Award Ceremony', Bilal Erdoğan was referred to as Necmeddin Bilal Erdoğan. The report included the following statement from Necmeddin Bilal Erdoğan:

“The real issue is to succeed in reviving our identity and culture and transferring them to new generations in a healthy way.”

The use of the name Necmeddin for Bilal Erdoğan points to a history linked to the name of Necmettin Erbakan, the founding leader of the Milli Görüş movement.

President Erdoğan once explained why he gave his son the name “Necmettin” in a statement:

"May God have mercy on his deeds. As for us, our rights are forgiven. The late Erbakan walked without losing anything from his cause. At the very least, he succeeded in becoming the leading party in Turkey, even if not alone."

Following the passing of Necmettin Erbakan, President Erdoğan shared the story behind his decision to give his son the name Necmettin as follows:

"We were at the Mamak courts after September 12. My wife was about to give birth. We were going to go inside for a visit, and we received the news of my wife's delivery. We started joking with friends. One said, 'Name him Necmettin.' When I told my wife, she said, 'I was going to name him Bilal.' I said, 'Then let his middle name be Bilal.' We named him Necmettin Bilal. Now, he is doing his doctorate. He will submit his graduation thesis this year and graduate."