BREAKING: REVERED ELDER STATESMAN, CHIEF TAYO AKPATA DIES AT 83

The late Chief Akpata

The death has been announced of a former Trustee and Executive Secretary of the defunct Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) and a one-time Commissioner for Education in old Bendel State, Chief Osayande Omotayo Akpata, CON. He passed on peacefully at his Ikoyi, Lagos residence around 10am on Monday, October 13th 2014.
He was aged 83.
The ELITES gathered that the revered elder-

statesman had been ill in the last few days. 
A press statement from the family on Monday evening confirmed the passing unto glory of the elder statesman and astute administrator who was the 'Ima of Benin'.
Burial arrangements will be announced in due course, according to the press statement.
He is survived by his wife, Chief (Mrs) Olabisi Akpata, nee Ayorinde; children and grandchildren.

Early callers at his Ikoyi residence include his bossom friend, Chief Femi Okunnu, SAN, Chief Phillip Asiodu, Mr Bode Emmanuel among many well-wishers.

A proud alumnus of Edo College, Benin and University of Hull, United Kingdom, Chief Akpata served as the Deputy Registrar of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State. He was a Director of Bendel Feeds and Flower Mills (BFFM) and Chairman of I.B.M (Nigeria) Ltd. 
He was also a one-time chairman of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and Pipeline and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of NNPC, as well as the Chairman of Siemens Nigeria.
He established the Tayo Akpata Foundation which caters to the needy and the underprivileged. 
He was a member of the Metropolitan Club and the Yoruba Tennis Club.