NICO to take responsibility of Pa Akinkunmi’s burial

The National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) has decided to take responsibility for the burial of Pa Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi, the man who designed the Nigerian flag.

In a statement, Caleb Nor, media assistant to the Executive Secretary of NICO, the institute said it was a move to ensure that Akinkunmi received a befitting burial 10 months after his death.

Nor explained that the institute’s decision was coming at the instance of trending news over the seeming neglect of the burial arrangement of the late national hero.

He said under President Bola Tinubu and the need to uphold the Nigerian culture, the institute stepped in with an interest to uphold the culture and obliterate actions considered inappropriate to “our” cultural norms.

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He quoted the Executive Secretary of NICO, Otunba Biodun Ajiboye, as saying that the decision was informed by the need to uphold the age-long respect for the dead, as well as honour to a past hero that contributed significantly to the making of Nigeria.

The statement reads in part: “It is a prominent part of our culture as a people not to neglect our heroes. Characteristically, our culture does not ignore this kind of cry. To which extent, the cry of the family of late Pa Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi, the man who designed the Nigerian flag, has come to the attention of the federal government, and NICO has compassionately considered taking up a major role and responsibility in coordinating and collaborating with other agencies that may be necessary in giving a befitting burial to this our fallen hero.”

He further said, “The Honourable Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, Barr Hannatu Musa Musawa, is deeply concerned about this situation and has directed NICO to wade into it immediately, and as such, we are making contacts with the family so as to get the details of how the federal government can come in to assist the family to give a befitting burial to Pa Akinkunmi.”