A funeral service was on Thursday held in Lagos of Nigeria’s first indigenous chartered accountant, Chief Akintola Williams, who died recently at the age of 104.
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who led other dignitaries to the service at the Muson Centre, Onikan, described the late accounting icon as an outstanding Nigerian and a big Lagosian.
Governor Sanwo-Olu said God blessed Chief Williams with longevity, good health and leadership skills which he exhibited throughout his lifetime.
He said: “At 104, how well would you describe a man that God first blessed with a long life and for a very long time, good health, and he had shown leadership at all levels? He was an outstanding Nigerian, a man who took his professional colleagues to a desirable level worldwide.
“He was also a lover of God, a churchgoer, and a man who built the altar of a church. He had all of the pillars to tick as a good man. We can only wish the family all the very best.
“To the country, we have lost an outstanding Nigerian, and for us in Lagos, we lost a big Lagosian. We will continue to have memories of the hospitable life that he lived. I will miss him personally. I believe he lived a good life.”
In a remark, Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State said the footprint of the late Akintola Williams would remain in the sand of time for many years because of what he stood for during his lifetime.
He said: “Baba (Akintola Williams) was an exceptional Nigerian because the Almighty God granted him the grace to live up to 104 years old. I am not sure we know many Nigerians that lived that long.
“He was a man after God’s heart. He was a big philanthropist and a lover of music. He was a man whose footprint will remain in the sand of time for many years for all that he stood for.
“On behalf of the government and the entire people of Ogun State and my family, we commiserate, congratulate and celebrate with the members of Baba’s immediate family and friends, the government and people of Lagos State, and of course Nigeria at large. We pray that God Almighty will grant the family and well-wishers the heart to bear the colossal loss.”
In his sermon, the Prelate Emeritus of Methodist Church Nigeria, Dr Sunday Makinde, urged family, friends and associates to immortalise the deceased by supporting the Akintola Williams Centenary Building Project of the Church.
Other eminent Nigerians at the funeral service included a former Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, General Ike Nwachukwu, captains of industry including Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Mr Jim Ovia, and religious leaders.
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