… entertained friends with reward money, explained design concept
Taiwo Akinkunmi, the designer of the green and white Nigerian national flag is dead.
Akinkunmi, who designed the national flag in 1958, died at age 87.
Akinkunmi had described the Nigerian flag which he designed as “having two equal portions of green, held together by a median portion of white”.
He said the first green portion represents the agricultural and natural wealth of the nation, while the second green portion represents the potential of her human capital resource.
The median white colour, he said, represents peace and progress.
Explaining how he came about designing the flag, Akinkunmi said he had seen an advert inviting enteries for the flag design in a Nigerian newspapaper in London while studying engineering in the UK.
He said he sent in his entry by mail and was pleasantly surprised when informed that his entry had been chosen.
He said he got five British pounds reward for his effort which he spent for his upkeep and to entertain friends who milled around him when the news of his successful entry broke in the circle of Nigeria students in the UK.
In a statement on Wednesday, President Bola Tinubu expressed his deepest sympathy to the Akinkunmi family.
The President said Akinkunmi “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 affirms that the Green and White flag is a legacy that has consistently reflected the fruitfulness, resilience, and harmony enjoyed by the nation, and the boldness and uniqueness with which Nigerians characteristically reach for and achieve success around the world,” Tinubu said in a statement by his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale.
