Anthony Olufunsho Williams (9 May 1948 – 27 July 2006) was an influential

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

politician from

Lagos State Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...

and former Commissioner under Colonel Olagunsoye Oyinlola's Military Administration in Lagos.

Early life

Funsho Williams attended the St. Paul's Catholic school at

Ebute Metta Ebute Metta is a neighbourhood of Lagos Mainland, Lagos, in Lagos State, Nigeria. History Ebute Metta is known for the production and sale of local food and cloths. It is a very old part of Lagos State, many of its houses were built during th ...

and later St Gregory's College, Lagos. In 1968, he studied at the

University of Lagos The University of Lagos (UNILAG) is a Public university, public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria, which was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the education in Nigeria#First generation universities, first generation universities in ...

, attaining a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

. He then went on to attend the

New Jersey Institute of Technology New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is a Public university, public research university in Newark, New Jersey, United States, with a graduate-degree-granting satellite campus in Jersey City. Founded in 1881 with the support of local indust ...

for his

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

Civil service career

In 1974, Williams returned to Nigeria and joined the

civil service. He spent the next 17 years working on construction projects in Lagos State. Approximately 70% of the roads and bridges were built under his stewardship. Williams was a Permanent Secretary by the time he left the civil service in 1991. He went into business, but he shortly returned to public service, as a Lagos state

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

under Colonel Olagunsoye Oyinlola's Military Administratorship.

Political career

In the mid-1990s, Williams decided to enter into politics in order that he could formulate policy, rather than just carry it out. He first joined the

United Nigeria Congress Party The United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP) was a Nigerian political party. It was one of the five state-sanctioned political parties allowed by the government of General Sani Abacha to participate in state assembly elections held in December 1997, i ...

(UNCP), but after the suspicious death of its leader, General

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (; (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military dictator and statesman who ruled Nigeria with an iron fist as military head of state from 1993 following a palace coup d'état until his death in 1998. Abacha's seiz ...

he moved to the Alliance for Democracy (AD). After a short time, Williams again switched parties, this time to the People's Democratic Party (PDP).They had won the 2003 elections under the leadership of President

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo (; ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian former army general, politician and statesman who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its president from 1999 to 200 ...

. Williams had stood twice before in the

Governorship (Gubernatorial)

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

. At the time of his death he was hoping to be nominated as the PDP Gubernatorial candidate for Lagos State. He had vowed to wrest control of the wealthy state from the Alliance for Democracy Party.

Positions

Williams held directorships in several companies: * Julius Berger Nigeria Plc * Cappa and D'Alberto Plc * Ajaokuta Steel Company *Chairman of the board of directors of the National Maritime Authority

Murder

On July 27, 2006, Funsho Williams was found bound, strangled, and stabbed at his home in Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, an exclusive and wealthy neighborhood in Lagos. On July 28, 2006, two people were arrested in connection with his death. One was his campaign manager, and the other was a senator and former Works Minister Kingsley Adeseye Ogunlewe. Ogunlewe was also hoping to be the PDP Gubernatorial candidat

Williams was laid to rest at the Victoria Court Cemetery, Lagos. He was survived by his wife, Hilda, and four children.

Memorial

On February 26, 2007, approximately seven months after the murder incident, the then Lagos State governor, Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu in honor of the late iconic character, renamed the longest and the popular Western Avenue highway in Lagos to Funsho William Avenue. Yet, it is still known to most Lagosians as Western Avenue highway.

References

External links

Official website of the Lagos State Government
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Funsho 1948 births Politicians from Lagos University of Lagos alumni Nigerian civil engineers Lagos State civil servants New Jersey Institute of Technology alumni United Nigeria Congress Party politicians Alliance for Democracy (Nigeria) politicians Peoples Democratic Party (Nigeria) politicians People murdered in Lagos Assassinated Nigerian politicians 2006 deaths St Gregory's College, Lagos alumni Burials at Victoria Court Cemetery Commissioners of ministries of Lagos State 2006 murders in Nigeria Nigerian corporate directors Assassinated businesspeople Businesspeople from Lagos African politicians assassinated in the 2000s Politicians assassinated in 2006