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Tag: Taiwo Akinkunmi

  • Funeral: What Oyo ex-lawmakers want FG to do for Pa Akinkunmi

    Funeral: What Oyo ex-lawmakers want FG to do for Pa Akinkunmi

    The members of the 7th Oyo State House of Assembly have urged the Federal Government to allow the national flag be flown at half-mast whenever Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi, would be buried.

    Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi was the designer of the National Flag.

    The lawmakers, who served between 2011 and 2015 under the speakership of Sen. Monsurat Sunmonu, stated this on Wednesday while addressing newsmen at the end of their meeting held in Ibadan.

    According to Sunmonu, who presided over the meeting, the 7th assembly invited Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi to the plenary precisely in June 2013 and asked so many questions as regards how he designed the national flag.

    “Having realised the contribution of Pa Akinkunmi to the nation, we wrote an open letter to the then President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, who invited us to the villa to intimate him about Pa Akinkunmi contributions.

    “President Jonathan subsequently took our advice and Pa Akinkunmi was given a national award and appointed as life-long Special Adviser to the nation’s President.

    “Now the national flag designer has passed away but we believe that Nigeria still has a lot to do for him, even in death, as long as Nigeria flag still remains.

    “We will appreciate if the Federal government and all the States in Nigeria could put the national flag half mast on the day of his burial to show that we do appreciate the man, even in death,” Sunmonu stated.

    The 7th Assembly Speaker used the opportunity to appreciate the Federal and state governments for promising to organise a beffiting burial for Pa Akinkunmi, saying they are looking forward to that promise.

    Sunmonu, however, said that whatever the state and federal governments would do during Pa Akinkunmi’s burial would be for the country and not for the 7th assembly members or his family.

  • Information Minister eulogizes national flag designer, Akinkunmi

    Information Minister eulogizes national flag designer, Akinkunmi

    The late Mr Taiwo Akinkunmi who designed the Nigerian flag was an iconic individual the nation will never forget, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, said on Monday.

    The Minister, while visiting the Oyo State Governor, Mr Seyi Makinde, in Ibadan said Akinkunmi designed one of the most powerful symbols of Nigerians’ collective existence as a nation.

    Idris, who was received by the Oyo State Deputy Governor, Mr Adebayo Lawal, said this was why President Bola Tinubu deemed it very important to send a Federal Government delegation.

    “The President received news of late Pa Akinkunmi’s death with regrets. But he also thanked God for the fact that it was a life well spent for Pa Akinkunmi.

    “President Tinubu deemed it necessary for the Federal Government to come and pay the last respects to him by sympathising with the Akinkunmi family, the state government and the entire people of Oyo state,” he said.

    The Minister said Akinkunmi, who was popularly known as ”Mr Flag” designed a national flag which has gone on to become a symbol of the country’s unity.

    “It has become the symbol of our independence, our sovereignty and symbol of our collective existence as people of Nigeria.

    “President Tinubu is proud of this gentleman for his notable role in making us a nation.

    “The colours of the flag are symbolic. There can never be a better symbol for us as a nation and of our existence as a nation

    “The national flag has the colours of green and white, with  the green symbolising the rich natural resources Nigeria possesses as a nation, and the white a symbol of our collective existence as a people living in peace and harmony with each other.

    “There can therefore never be a better symbol about collective existence as a nation within the context of what Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi has given us,” he said.

    Idris further noted that the deceased was indeed a patriotic Nigerian, one who believed in the collective existence of Nigeria as a nation.

    The Minister, however, said while the Federal Government was yet to receive any request from the Akinkunmi family, it was ready to look into any request the family forwarded to it.

    In his response, the Deputy Governor appreciated President Tinubu for the kind gesture of sympathising with the family, the government and people of Oyo State.

    He said the state government believed that the legacy of unity left by the late Pa Akinkunmi, through the Nigerian flag he designed, would not be lost on Nigerians.

    The Deputy Governor noted that the country’s flag has stood the test of time from 1959 when Akinkunmi at age 23 designed it till date.

    “While we as a nation have had cause to change the national anthem, the national flag still remained unchanged, and this is because the nation didn’t see reason to change it,” he said.

    The Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Garba Abari, was part of the Federal Government delegation.

    The Minister had earlier on arrival been received by heads of the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation’s agencies and parastatals in Ibadan.

    They had gone on to accompany him on the condolence visit.

  • Family wants state burial for late national flag designer

    Family wants state burial for late national flag designer

    The family of late Taiwo Akinkunmi, the designer of Nigeria’s national flag, on Friday in Ibadan urged the Federal Government to honour him with a state burial.

    Mr Akinremi Akinkunmi, the eldest son of the late Taiwo said such honour would go a long way in making Nigerian youths better.

    ”It will make the Nigerian youths believe in hard work, integrity and selfless service to the nation,” he said.

    The young Mr Akinkunmi noted that the demise of his father was a great loss to the entire family because he left them with a vacuum only God could fill.

    He described his father as a brilliant man and an intellectual from childhood, saying such qualities earned him a scholarship to study abroad and bring him other recognitions.

    “I believe that we don’t need to mourn him because he played his part well. He got to his bus stop ceremoniously in life and got down peacefully.

    “But we want the Federal Government to give him a befitting burial.

    “Also, we are going to miss his fatherly advice, friendliness and kindness to everyone around him,” Akinkunmi said.

    Meanwhile, Mr Olaniran Shofela, a Family Head and Community Leader from Abiodun’s Compound at Oke Ago-Owu in Abeokuta, says the late Akinkunmi was not from Ibadan or Ekiti as speculated.

    Shofela said Akinkunmi remained a pride of his family among the people of Owu in Abeokuta, because he made his mark and did something unique in the history of Nigeria.

    “Nobody will write the history of Nigeria today without mentioning his name because his effort had made him to occupy a conspicuous place in the history of Nigeria as a whole.

    “His ingenuity came to bear when his national flag design emerged overall best out of numerous designs in a competition that was devoid of corruption,” he said.

    Shofela urged youths to emulate the useful and contented life of Akinkunmi by not placing money before service, hard work and integrity.

    He noted that Akinkunmi left a legacy of service, humility and integrity, which made people to celebrate him during his lifetime and even after his demise.

    “Our youths nowadays worship money too much, as if money is everything.

    “If the late Akinkunmi had also worshipped money like our youths, many people would have forgotten him today because he would have just belonged to a class for a short period before being consigned to the trash bin,

    “The younger generation should take things easy and imbibe the spirit of patriotism and humility. They should be contented, show respect and be ready to learn from elderly people,” Shofela added.

    Taiwo Akinkunmi died on Tuesday at the age of 87 after a brief sickness associated with old age. He was survived by three children —- Akinremi, Folake Oloyede (Mrs) and Akinwumi.

    The late Akinkunmi attended Baptist Day Primary School in Ibadan for his primary education and Ibadan Grammar School for his secondary education.

    He started his career as a civil servant at the Oyo State Secretariat in Ibadan, before traveling abroad to study Agricultural Engineering at the Norway Technical College.

    It was during his stay abroad that he came across a newspaper advertisement in 1958 calling for the submission of designs for the Nigerian national flag.

    Nigeria, then under the British Colonial rule, was at the threshold of gaining its independence to become a sovereign country.

    Akinkunmi’s entry was adjudged the best among the numerous entries submitted, and on Oct. 1, 1960 the flag was officially hoisted to replace the British Union Jack.

  • What Tinubu said about late Pa Akinkunmi

    What Tinubu said about late Pa Akinkunmi

    President Bola Tinubu has conveyed his sympathy to the family of Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi, who designed the national flag in 1958, following his passing into glory at the age of 87.

    This is contained in a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, on Wednesday in Abuja.

    Tinubu condoled with friends and associates of the retired civil servant, who dedicated his life to the service of the nation, sharing knowledge and experience with old and young, and inspiring many to think and act patriotically.

    The President affirmed that the Green and White flag is a legacy that has consistently reflected the fruitfulness, resilience, and harmony enjoyed by the nation.

    He said that it represented the boldness and uniqueness with which Nigerians characteristically reach for and achieve success around the world.

    The President believed Pa Akinkunmi lived and worked for the greatness of the country, with a generational legacy and a place of honour in Nigeria.

    Born Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi in Ibadan, the older of a set of twins, he lived with his father until he was eight years old before he relocated to the Northern part of Nigeria.

    He began his early education in the North and after his father’s retirement, he came down to the West and was re-enrolled at Baptist Day School, Idi-Ikan in Ibadan.

    He was a Nigerian civil servant who was best known for designing Nigeria’s national flag.

    He was commonly referred to as Mr Flag Man.