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Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boat ...
Akintola Williams (9 August 1919 – 11 September 2023) was a Nigerian accountant. He was the first Nigerian to qualify as a chartered accountant. Williams began his education at Olowogbowo Methodist Primary School, Bankole street, Apongbon, Lagos Island, Lagos, in the early 1930s; the same primary school his late junior brother Chief Rotimi Williams attended. His youngest brother Rev. James Kehinde Williams was a pastor in the same church, Olowogbowo Methodist Church. His firm founded in 1952, later grew organically and through mergers to become the largest professional services firm in Nigeria by 2004. Williams participated in founding the
Nigerian Stock Exchange The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX), now Nigerian Exchange Group, is an integrated stock exchange group in Africa founded in 1961 in Lagos. Following the demutualization of the NSE in 2021, NGX Group now has 3 subsidiaries - Nigerian Exchange Limit ...
and the
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) is a professional accountancy body in Nigeria. It is one of the two professional accountancy associations with regulatory authority in Nigeria, the other being the Association of National A ...
. During a long career, he received many honours. He married Mabel Efunroye Williams (née Coker) who was a member of the Coker family, a very prominent and influential family in Nigeria. Akintola Williams' brother-in-law, Mr.
F.C.O Coker Frank Cuthbert Oladipo Coker (30 January 1919 – 11 July 2003) was a Nigerian accountant, administrator, and civil servant. He was the first President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria(ICAN), where he helped to establish profe ...
, along with Williams helped create the
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) is a professional accountancy body in Nigeria. It is one of the two professional accountancy associations with regulatory authority in Nigeria, the other being the Association of National A ...
(ICAN) and Coker being the first president of ICAN.


Birth and education

Akintola Williams was born on 9 August 1919. His grandfather, Z. A. Williams, was a merchant prince from
Abeokuta Abeokuta is the capital city of Ogun State located at the south western part of Nigeria. It is situated on the east bank of the Ogun River, near a group of rocky outcrops in a wooded savanna; north of Lagos by railway, or by water. , Abeokut ...
and his father Thomas Ekundayo Williams was a clerk in the colonial service who set up a legal practice in
Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
after training in London, England. He was the older brother of Frederick Rotimi Williams, who later became a distinguished lawyer, and the late Rev. James Kehinde Williams, a Christian minister. For his primary education in the early 1930s, he attended Olowogbowo Methodist Primary School, Lagos. Williams then attended the
CMS Grammar School, Lagos The CMS Grammar School in Bariga, a suburb of Lagos in Lagos State, is the oldest secondary school in Nigeria, founded on 6 June 1859 by the Church Missionary Society. For decades it was the main source of African clergymen and administrators in ...
. He went on to
Yaba Higher College Yaba Higher College was founded in 1932 in Yaba, Lagos, Yaba, now a suburb of Lagos in Nigeria to provide tertiary education to Africans, mostly in vocational subjects and teaching. The college staff were transferred to start the University Colleg ...
on a UAC scholarship, obtaining a diploma in commerce. In 1944, he travelled to England where he studied at the
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...
. Studying Banking and Finance, he graduated in 1946 with a Bachelor of Commerce. He continued his studies and qualified as a chartered accountant in England in 1949. A Yoruba of chiefly background, the
Oloye ''Oba'' ('King' in the Yoruba language, Yoruba language) is a pre-nominal honorific for kings in Yorubaland. Traditional rulers with dynasties of Yoruba origin, across the modern republics of Benin, Nigeria, and Togo, frequently make use of it. ...
Williams was one of the founders of the
Egbe Omo Oduduwa Egbé Ọmọ Odùduwà () is a Nigerian political organisation established in 1945 by Yoruba leaders in London. Its initial purpose was to unite the Yoruba people in a manner similar to the tenets of the Ibibio State Union and the Igbo Federal U ...
society while in London, with Dr. Oni Akerele as president and Chief
Obafemi Awolowo Obafemi Jeremiah Oyeniyi Awolowo (6 March 1909 – 9 May 1987) was a Nigerian politician who served as the first Premier of the Western region of Nigeria. He was known as one of the key figure towards Nigeria's independence movement from 1957 ...
as Secretary.


Accounting career

After returning to Nigeria in 1950, Williams served with the Inland Revenue as an assessment officer until March 1952, when he left the civil service and founded Akintola Williams & Co. in
Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
. The company was the first indigenous chartered accounting firm in Africa. At the time, the accountancy business was dominated by five large foreign firms. Although there were a few small local firms, they were certified rather than chartered accountants. Williams gained business from indigenous companies including
Nnamdi Azikiwe Nnamdi Benjamin Azikiwe, (16 November 1904 – 11 May 1996), commonly referred to as Zik of Africa, was a Nigerian politician, statesman, and revolutionary leader who served as the 3rd and first black governor-general of Nigeria from 1960 ...
's ''
West African Pilot The ''West African Pilot'' was a newspaper launched in Nigeria by Nnamdi Azikiwe ("Zik") in 1937, dedicated to fighting for independence from British colonial rule. It is most known for introducing popular journalism within Nigeria. The main f ...
'', K. O. Mbadiwe's African Insurance Company, Fawehinmi Furniture and Ojukwu Transport. He also provided services to the new state-owned corporations including the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria, the Western Nigeria Development Corporation, the Eastern Nigeria Development Corporation, the
Nigerian Railway Corporation Nigerian Railway Corporation (commonly abbreviated as NRC) is the state-owned enterprise with exclusive rights to operate railways in Nigeria. History The Nigerian Railway Corporation traces its history to the year 1898, when the first railr ...
and the
Nigerian Ports Authority The Nigerian Ports Authority (''NPA'') is a federal government agency that governs and operates the ports of Nigeria. The major ports controlled by the NPA include: the Lagos Port Complex and Tin Can Island Port in Lagos; Calabar Port, Delta ...
. The first partner in the firm, Charles S. Sankey, was appointed in 1957, followed by the Cameroonian Mr. Njoh Litumbe. Litumbe opened branch offices in
Port Harcourt Port Harcourt (Pidgin: ''Po-ta-kot or Pi-ta-kwa)'' is the capital and largest city of Rivers State in Nigeria. It is the fifth most populous city in Nigeria after Lagos, Kano, Ibadan and Benin. It lies along the Bonny River and is locate ...
and
Enugu Enugu () verbally pronounced as "Enụgwụ" by the Igbo indigenes is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by the states of Benue and Kogi, Ebonyi State to the east and southeast, Abia State to the so ...
, and later spearheaded overseas expansion. In 1964, a branch was opened in the
Cameroons British Cameroons or British Cameroon was a British mandate territory in British West Africa, formed of the Northern Cameroons and Southern Cameroons. Today, the Northern Cameroons forms parts of the Borno, Adamawa and Taraba states of Nigeri ...
, followed by branches in
Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...
and Swaziland, and affiliates in Ghana, Egypt and Kenya. By March 1992, the company had 19 partners and 535 staff. Demand grew as a result of the Companies Act of 1968, which required that companies operating in Nigeria formed locally incorporated subsidiaries and published audited annual accounts. The drive in the early 1970s to encourage indigenous ownership of businesses also increased demand. In 1973, AW Consultant Ltd, a management consultancy headed by Chief Arthur Mbanefo, was spun off. The company acquired a computer service company and a secretarial service, and in 1977, the company entered into an agreement with Touche Ross International based on profit sharing. Williams was also a board member and major shareholder in a number of other companies. He retired in 1983. Between April 1999 and May 2004, Akintola Williams & Co. merged with two other accounting firms to create Akintola Williams Deloitte (now known as Deloitte & Touche), the largest professional services firm in Nigeria with a staff of over 600.


Public roles and honours

Williams played a leading role in establishing the Association of Accountants in Nigeria in 1960 with the goal of training accountants. He was the first President of the association. He was founding member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. He was also involved in establishing the Nigerian Stock Exchange. He remained actively involved with these organisations into his old age. At a stock exchange ceremony in May 2011, he called on operators to protect the market and ensure there was no scandal. He said that, if needed, market operators should not hesitate to seek his advice on resolving any problem. Public sector positions held by him include Chairman of the Federal Income Tax Appeal Commissioners (1958–68), member of the Coker Commission of Inquiry run by his brother-in-law
Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
G.B.A. Coker, a Lagos High Chief into the Statutory Corporations of the former Western Region of Nigeria (1962), member of the board of Trustees of the
Commonwealth Foundation The Commonwealth Foundation (CF) is an intergovernmental organisation that was established by the list of Commonwealth heads of government, Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1966, a year after its sister organisation, the Commonwealth Secre ...
(1966–1975), Chairman of the Lagos State Government Revenue Collection Panel (1973) and Chairman of the Public Service Review Panel to correct the anomalies in the Udoji Salary Review Commission (1975). Other positions include President of the Metropolitan Club in
Victoria Island, Lagos Victoria Island (VI) is an affluent area that encompasses a former island of the same name neighbouring Lagos Island, Ikoyi and the Lekki Peninsula by the Lagos Lagoon. It is the main business and finance, financial centre of Lagos State, Niger ...
, Founder and Council member of the
Nigerian Conservation Foundation The Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) is an environmental non-governmental organization that promotes environmental tourism with the goal of expanding awareness of Nigeria's natural resources and creating economic incentives. Founded in 198 ...
and Founder and chairman of the board of Trustees of the Musical Society of Nigeria. In 1982, Williams was honoured by the Nigerian Government with the O.F. R. Following retirement in 1983, Williams threw himself into a project to establish a music centre and concert hall for the Music Society of Nigeria. In April 1997, Williams was appointed a
Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
for services to the accountancy profession and for promotion of arts, culture and music through the Musical Society of Nigeria. The Akintola Williams Arboretum at the Nigerian Conservation Foundation headquarters in Lagos is named in his honour. On 8 May 2011, the Nigeria-Britain Association presented awards to
John Kufuor John Kofi Agyekum Kufuor (born 8 December 1938) is a Ghanaian politician who served as the tenth president of Ghana from 2001 to 2009. He was the fifth chairperson of the African Union from 2007 to 2008 and his victory over John Atta Mills at t ...
, past President of Ghana, and to Akintola Williams, for their contributions to democracy and development in Africa.


Death

Williams
turned 100 A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...
in August 2019, and died at his home in
Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
on 11 September 2023, at the age of 104.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Akintola 1919 births 2023 deaths Yoruba politicians Businesspeople from Lagos Nigerian financial analysts Alumni of the University of London Officers of the Order of the Federal Republic Nigerian accountants Egbe Omo Oduduwa politicians Yoruba businesspeople 20th-century Nigerian businesspeople 21st-century Nigerian businesspeople CMS Grammar School, Lagos alumni Nigerian company founders Yaba Higher College alumni Nigerian men centenarians