Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi: Oyo State Government Sponsors Funeral One Year after Demise

 One year after the death of the designer of Nigeria's national flag, Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi, his relatives have released a statement revealing that The Oyo state governor, Seyi Makinde, had provided funds to help with the deceased national's funeral expense. Explaining the reason for the prolonged unburied state of Mr Akinkunmi, his son and family spokesperson, Samuel Akinkunmi, stated that the Federal Government had at the time of Pa Taiwo's death, pledged to sponsor a national burial while repeatedly dissuading his family from going ahead with a private funeral.  Mr Samuel Akinkunmi also expressed gratitude to governor Seyi Makinde for the release of the undisclosed funds. 

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Commonly referred to as Mr. Flag Man, Taiwo Akinkunmi was a civil servant best known for designing Nigeria's national flag of green, white, green. He designed the flag in 1958 while studying at Lambeth College(formerly Norwood Technical College) in London, after he entered a competition asking interested applicants to send in their designs for a flag. In 2021, Akinkunmi unveiled the world’s largest national flag in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital. In 2014, Taiwo Akinkunmi was honoured with Officer of the Order of Federal Republic (OFR) and honorary life presidential adviser by former president, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan at the Conference Center, Abuja. Mr Akinkunmi who passed away on the night of 29th August 2023, was a native of Abeokuta, Ogun state, but lived in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, until his demise.