...IN HIS SON’S WORDS
Born in 1919, Akintola Williams attended Olowogbowo Methodist Primary School, Lagos then CMD Grammer School also in Lagos. He went on to Yaba Higher College obtaining a Diploma in Commerce. In 1944, he travelled to England and studied Banking and Finance. He graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce. He continued his studies and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1949.
After returning to Nigeria in 1950, he worked with the Inland Revenue until 1952 when he founded Akintola Williams & Co in Lagos making it the first Chartered Accountancy firm in Africa. The first partner was Charles Sankey followed by Njoh Litumbe. The firm opened branches in Port Harcourt and Enugu. In 1964, a branch was opened in the Cameroons, followed by others in Côte d’Ivoire and Swaziland with affiliates in Ghana, Egypt and Kenya. By 1992, the firm had 19 partners and 535 staff. Between 1999 and 2004, Akintola Williams & Co. merged with two other Accounting firms to create Akintola Williams Deloitte (now known as Deloitte & Touché), the largest professional services firm in Nigeria with a staff strength of over 600. Williams was also a board member and major shareholder in a number of other companies. He retired in 1983. NWilliams played a leading role in establishing the Association of Accountants In 1960 and was its first President. He was also a founding member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and it’s first president. He was involved in establishing the Nigerian Stock Exchange as well. Williams has held too many public sector positions to mention. In 1982, he was honored by the Nigerian Government with the OFR. Following his retirement in 1983, BWilliams established a music and concert hall for the Music Society of Nigeria (MUSON). In 1997, he was appointed Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his services to the Accountancy profession and for promotion of arts, culture and music. The Akintola Williams Arboretum in Lagos is named in his honour. In 2011, the Nigerian British Association presented him with an award for his contribution to democracy and development in Africa. Akintola Williams has been referred to as reliable and a man of integrity. Stable, a loyal friend, a man of dignity, humble. A seasoned professional, a perfect gentleman with impeccable pedigree. A distinguished Nigerian with a good name. A nation builder, a role model and a rare gem. And best of all, a living legend! It truly is an honour to celebrate this centenarian. Living to see 100 years is by no means common in today’s times. His son, Seni was gracious enough to grant STYLE an interview on his father’s behalf giving us a peek into his journey in life till date. FUNKE BABS-KUFEJI reports... Can you give us a brief history of the Akintola family?
Papa’s mother was part of the returnee Brazilian slave group. She was called Mama Tokunbo. Her family name is Fernandez and that’s how papa became first cousins with Chief Deinde Fernandez. They settled in Lagos Island. His father died very early. I never met him. He died in his early 40s. How many kids did your grandmother have for his father?
She had three. Papa Akintola, Kehinde and Soji. Both are late. Soji was Nigeria’s ambassador to other countries and Kehinde was a church minister. Papa and Chief Rotimi Williams are half-brothers; they share the same father, but different mothers.
Through the Brazilian family relationships, Pa Emanuel, father of Bode Emanuel asked Papa to help bring Bode through the profession, which was Bode’s preference.
And it was through that, working for Papa’s firm, that Papa and Bode became very close, and remained extremely close since. Many people often call Bode my senior brother, of which I’m perfectly happy; he and I are also close. He is also part of the Brazilian slave community of Lagos Island. Does that community still exist?
It exists. It very much exists. There are the Cardosos, the Da Rochas, Da Costas, and many others. If you go to Ikoyi cemetery, you will see the graves of many of these families arranged together. There was a cemetery at Campos Square on Lagos island and that cemetery was relocated and because many Brazilians lived on Lagos Island, they were buried there. During relocation there was the chance to arrange the graves and that is why the Brazilians were laid to rest at one section of Ikoyi Cemetry, near the Radio Nigeria end, you find them all neatly arranged. They didn’t die at the same time, but all the Brazilians were kept together. Are there any special things that you do now that reminds you of your ancestry in Lagos?
A lot. We are very strong followers of the Careta which is what is revived by the state government as the Lagos carnival. We also have traditional hailing back to Brazilian origins. When does that occur?
Traditionally, at Easter time. The Careta groups form a procession from Lagos Island through Victoria Island and the newer areas of Lagos and they end with a colourful show at the Tafawa Balewa Square. It’s being going on for over hundred years, same age as Papa incidentally.
We eat a particular kind of food at Easter time. It’s called Frejon. It’s made from beans, coconut juice, lemon, ginger and cloves. It’s very popular with the Brazilian group. It’s always served with a fish sauce. Anyone that knows Brazilians know that during Easter they exchange this. One of the senior ladies in the family generally cooks and distributes to all families and friends to share in our tradition. Now that Papa is a hundred years old, is he still very alert?
Papa is very alert. His hearing isn’t as good as it was before but his eyesight is sharp. If you write anything in front of him, he can read perfectly. He doesn’t always need to wear glasses. He finds it easier to read handwriting than typed texts.
For instance, when Grandpa asked why Niyi (grandson) has a beard. I said to Remi (his other grandson) “Write a note by hand to Grandpa letting him know it is because his boss at work has a beard as well”. My father always had this rule about not hiring people with beards because he believed they look like criminals. What are the particular things he likes to do now? He still enjoys music, limited socialising, good food and drink and most especially his family and friends. Asides from traditions, what’s is a day in Papa’s life like now?
He doesn’t eat any cooked food for breakfast. He eats four to five different kinds of fruits. That’s pawpaw, pineapple, orange, apples and pears. He goes through that every single day. Then he will have a very small lunch at 3 o’clock. He’d have dinner in the evening where he eats a stronger meal; he eats very well, more than I do. At the restaurant the other day, he ate five courses.
Papa is very alert. His hearing isn’t as good as it was before but his eyesight is sharp. If you write anything in front of him, he can read perfectly. He doesn’t always need to wear glasses. He finds it easier to read handwriting than typed texts.
Who takes most care of him now? Does he live alone, have a nurse or steward?
Yes. His house helpers have been with the family for 30 years. The youngest has also been looking after him since 2003, 17 years now. My sister also lives in the house with him What time does he go to bed?
He goes to bed around 10 or 11pm. He wakes up roughly about 12pm. What does he do to while away time?
He sits and reads newspapers, books, stories; people send him stories. He doesn’t write much anymore, but he certainly writes if he’s asked to. He writes letters. He prefers to write letters by hand. He bathes himself, does a lot of things himself. He has lost muscle tone, which is common with older people. That’s the only mobility problem he has. Apart from that, Papa is fine. He’s had two surgeries in his life: he had the first when he was 93, which is typically a very high-risk situation.
After his first surgery, it was crazy. The doctors couldn’t believe it. He came out of the surgery, they put him in intensive care, and he was there for 40 minutes. Then they took him to the recovery room, and there he spent about two hours, before taking him back to his bedroom. It was extraordinary for a 93-year-old to go through that. Two days after the surgery, he’s standing and smiling, the hospital couldn’t believe it. He probably doesn’t have many friends his age bracket left. So who does he visit?
People come to visit him, and to be frank, it is a whole mixture of people. Bode Emanuel is frequently here. Former partners of Akintola Williams & Co have been very good with their time. The other people that come to see him are friends from MUSON and many other organizations he either created or was closely associated with. MUSON sometimes comes with its choir and they spend time with him, and during Christmas they make sure he has one or two concerts here. So, he loves music obviously? He loves music.
What kind of music does he like listening to?
Highlife, classical and opera; those are the three kinds of music he likes. But he’s stopped playing it now. The gadgets have become too complicated. They don’t make CDs anymore, and he just hasn’t kept up with technology. It moved very quickly for his generation, and for him he was born in 1919 when even the telephone was rare. Technology has changed the way we communicate, and it has changed a lot since 1919. He has an email address; he used to use his email until last year. His secretary still uses the email for people that want to communicate with him, but he doesn’t need a full-time secretary anymore, so most people have resorted to getting in touch with me or my sister or our children and we pass the messages across to him.
Does he still travel?
No. He has made it clear he does not want to travel again.
A flight would be too strenuous for him?
I don’t believe a flight would be too strenuous for him, but he has no interest in seeing anywhere else. Even when we were there for the surgery, we were only in London for 30 minutes. And that was to pick out some glasses. The surgery was done in a rural part of the UK so we could avoid many visitors and also be near the airport to arrive and leave easily.
When you sit down with him nowadays, does he regale in the Lagos of old? What kind of conversations do you have?
We communicate about the future, my children, and what’s going on generally in Nigeria. He’s interested in what’s going on in Nigeria but he is unhappy the direction has been sliding in for the past 20+ years.
What are his views about the state of things in Nigeria?
He is saddened by the state of things in Nigeria at the moment. He’s very worried for it because he came into this part of West Africa before Nigeria existed. He’s seen the formation of Nigeria, the rearrangement of the geography of Nigeria and balances business with that. Some of his partners were born in the eastern part of Nigeria that eventually became Cameroon. His partner in Cameroon who is still alive, is actually a lead in the resistance group challenging the French-facing government of Cameroon.
And his partner is how old?
He’s 92.
Does he still communicate with him?
That’s an interesting question. Yes, they still communicate. His partner was here last year and as usual, stayed in this house with Papa. There is a strong bond between Papa and his senior partners who built the firm up; Chief Charles Sankey (late), Chief Arthur Mbanefo, Chief Ike Nwokolo to name just a few. They have a very strong bond between them. There’s a picture of Bode Emanuel, Papa and Chief Sankey together in Portugal. This picture is called the Three Musketeers.
Your mom died how long ago?
Ten years ago.
And has there being a drastic difference after her departure?
No, he has had good support from my late wife, myself, his grand children, my sister, and all the good family members around him, as well as his friends. They surrounded him with care, and I think that’s what people really need. I think that’s what saved him within the first six months and that’s what has kept him till now.
Sometimes when he’s alone, do you think he might be bored?
No.
He says it when he’s lonely. He is one of the few people that says “I am on my lonesome”. I’ve never heard him say lonely; he always says lonesome. Does he still talk about your mom?
Yes. Only in the context that there’s no power. He’d say, “If your mother was alive, there’d be power,” because she was an activist and always harassing the power company and they were terrified of her and made sure there was usually power or water. He attributes all of the comfort he’s had in his life to her. She believed that everyone should have power, water and education. Mama championed all of that.
What does he feel about the pulse of the nation today? Does he talk about where he sees Nigeria in the next couple of years?
No, but he’s gravely worried about the future of Nigeria, and mainly due to the breakdown of personal integrity and trust. I got a recent update on the definition of trust, which is more in a modern context, it goes like this“Trust is the expectation that the other party will do the right thing and act with integrity.” In a few words, this sums up who my father and mother are.
What’s Papa’s definition of trust?
How he behaves, is his definition of trust. “I will do the right thing, you do not need to ask me to do the right thing, and what is expected of me, at the time that it is expected of me”.
Apart from losing Mama, has there been other painful memories he’s had in his lifetime?
Yes. The loss of his younger brothers. His other younger brothers Kehinde and Soji. He’s outlived all of them, but he was very close to them. He was lately most upset at the death of my wife who he had a special and private relationship with.
So, he literally doesn’t know any other human being that’s his age right now?
There were two gentlemen who close in age to Papa and schoolmates of his. Unfortunately, both are late. One is Engineer Victor Haffner and, the other is the father of Atedo Peterside, they went to secondary school together.
Does Papa still communicate by phone?
No.
How does he communicate?
Either through me, my sister or anyone visiting him. He decides the right person to deal with in any matter, he’s very accurate and resolves anything he wants done.
So how did he feel about his birthday?
Well, we had a party that evening of his birthday. The prior week, my sister had arranged that he took it very lightly, so that he was strong enough for the party. We had support from a lot of generous family and friends of Papa; the Williams family, the Moore family, the Cokers, Bode Emmanuel, Delotte and others -they did a monumental job in bringing the caliber of guests to the party and also making sure the party happened in a dignified way.
How did he feel? Was he excited?
He was very excited. And I know, from an occasion at the Metropolitan Club. It was a Tuesday and we were sitting together, and he said to me, “Seni come closer. This 100th Birthday, I want to make it.” And I said, “Why do you want to make it?” And he said, “Because I don’t want any of these other people (table one) to beat me to it.”
The other people being, Chief Anyaoku, Chief Ogunbanjo, Chief Olopade and others. He wanted to establish a gap between him and them, so that other members of the club would have a tough time beating him. It was a bit of a cheeky rivalry there. Also, once during breakfast, Papa dragged me closer and said,
“This 100 year, I think I want to see what it’s like.” These are things Papa told us that gave us hope and inspiration, that he would actually make it to 100. He wants to see what life’s like on the other side of 100.
There are very few Nigerians that age.
No, I think there are quite a number of Nigerians his age and older, you just don’t know them. However, somebody said to me that he’s the first Nigerian professional - and a successful professional - to have made it to 100, untarnished. Another heartbreaking thing for Papa was when my wife died. Diane was his friend. They really liked each other.
How many grandchildren does he have?
He has two grandchildren Remi and Adeniyi. Remi is married to Roya and Adeniyi is married to Busola. Mama and Papa were really close to their grandchildren. Both grandchildren are expecting children. My two sons, Papa and I went out to lunch together and he said that he wants to see these two give birth.
Who are the members of Table 1?
Chief Femi Okunnu who is in his 80s. Chief Onabade who is 93. Chief Anyaoku, one of the youngest, who is 82. Chief Osunkeye who is definitely the youngest, he is in his late 70s. Professor Odeniyi who is in his 80s. Chief Shonekan, who is in his 80s. Chief Odebanjo, who is closest to Papa, is 96, I believe. His ultimate aim was to make it to 100 and to make it very difficult for any of them to beat him. (laughter)
It seems Papa had a penchant for suits more than traditional?
Yes, that was related to professional practice. Wearing traditional attire for the position of a UK trained accountant, doesn’t convey the aura of discipline, position and professionalism. He never wears native.
Why?
He doesn’t like it. It is too cumbersome. When you go to Abuja and see everybody dressing in a particular way, to him, it feels like they’re not serious. He sees business attire as a suit and tie, and that reflects the way business is conducted globally. It also eliminates tribe and how much money you’ve got; it brings everyone to a common level. Even the Chinese wear suits when it comes to business though they have their traditional attire for non-business situations.
“This 100 year, I think I want to see what it’s like.” These are things Papa told us that gave us hope and inspiration, that he would actually make it to 100. He wants to see what life’s like on the other side of 100.
What is it about the wellness (and specifically spa) industry that initially drew you in? Have you always been passionate about health and wellness?
I believe taking care of our health and wellness is paramount for lifetime longevity. Failure to look after both of the above will result in undesirable issues in the future. That said, I have always being interested in keeping healthy, being fit and well. This interest peaked around 2010 and that’s when I decide to take it more seriously. Then I discovered the true art of Hammam (bath) during one of my travels. It was at a one-stop beauty spa salon dedicated to women only. This was my first inspiration for the spa business and eventual move into the industry. My interest was driven by the realization that there weren’t many female-only spas around Abuja.
While interacting and engaging with many women (especially Muslim women who wear the hijab), I realised that the one big challenge that we all struggle with is the conventional unisex hair salon where men are also customers or stylists. For an even larger group of women, the thought of using unisex spas was unfathomable because they just would not feel at ease. Therefore, it was paramount to create a safe sanctuary for women to enjoy, relax and let their hair down.
The beauty and wellness industry is an extremely saturated one. What’s the game plan for Le Hamman?
Firstly, the beauty industry is an ever-evolving one, so there are always parts of the industry that can be carved out as a niche until others catch up. That said, there are a couple of things I have lined up to do different and I will share with you two.
These are customer service and quality service. If you notice both have got the word service in them and is similar because Le Hammam is a model that is heavily based on service provision and a failure to recognize the importance of service is a good plan and recipe for failure.
Tell us about your signature treatments and why ladies reading this should try them out?
We offer classic treatments that are exclusive to us. Our Queen Sheeba hammam treatment has all shades of royalty attached to it. There are also a wide variety of facial treatments and massages that would ensure you get a taste of the real Le Hammam experience.
The craze to become light skinned has eaten deep into Nigerian women. What are your views on skin bleaching?
It’s an interesting trend that has taken over our society. Some do it so well while others don’t actually get it right. Skin bleaching is a personal choice and I respect the choices made by those who want to lighten their skin.
Can you let us in on your favorite beauty tips, tricks and secrets?
There are no secrets in this day and age. For me, I’d say my essentials are to keep the skin fresh, breathing and clean. I have also learnt to eat right, rest as at when due, be content with my look with or without makeup and finally find my inner peace so it radiates outward.
What’s your wellness philosophy?
For me it’s all about simplicity. These are; eat well, rest, laugh a lot and stay positive
What’s the one must-have beauty treatment you’d recommend to a first timer at Le Hammam?
I honestly can’t pick just one. You simply have to try our Classic hammam, one of our signature facials and a good relaxation massage.
Where do you see Le Hammam in a few years?
In the short-term, I see Le Hammam breaking new grounds in the provision of services we offer by providing up to date technology to aid our procedures and processes. I hope we grow in strength, become a household name in the industry, open up branches across the country, and expand outside the shores of Nigeria.
If you could give one tip to any young female entrepreneur about becoming successful, what would it be?
Whoa! That should be asked to Dangote or Otedola or other big time business persons. However, there are a few key factors that should be in place such as: planning, research, flexibility, staying up-to-date on your chosen business sector amongst others.