By Michael Agbaji
The Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, Ph.D, has expressed shock and deep pain over the death of the Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings Plc and founder of HOW Foundation, Dr Herbert Wigwe, CON, and others in a helicopter crash in the United States.
Wigwe reportedly died in the chopper alongside his wife, Doreen and son Chizi, as well as a former Group Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Mr. Abimbola Ogunbanjo, MFR.
The Speaker, after receiving an official confirmation of the incident and deaths by the Group Company Secretary, Sunday Ekwochi, on Sunday, described it as a huge tragedy to Nigeria as a country.
Speaker Abbas recalled how Wigwe as CEO of Access Bank Plc grew the deposit money bank to a household name in Nigeria and spread across Africa and other continents.
He also noted that Wigwe’s elevation to GCEO of Access Holdings Plc was an attestation to the entrepreneurial excellence, business acumen and corporate ethics.
The Speaker said Wigwe has left a huge vacuum in the banking sector and the corporate world by extension, urging the corporate organisations that he championed and served most of his life to sustain his legacy.
Speaker Abbas prayed to God to console the bereaved families and grant them the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss of their loved ones. He also prayed to God to grant the departed souls eternal rest.
