A visibly emotional Aliko Dangote found it difficult to restrain his tears as the funeral proceedings for the late Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings, Herbert Wigwe, commenced in Lagos State on Monday.
Cloaked in somber black attire, the Chairman of the Dangote Group was overcome with emotion as he offered heartfelt tributes to Wigwe, whom he fondly referred to as a brother, mentee, and friend.
“To immortalize my beloved friend, my brother, and my mentee, I have decided to designate one of the major roads leading to the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Complex after him,” he announced at the Eko Hotel in Lagos State. “Out of the 120 kilometers of road, the largest stretch will now bear the name ‘Herbert Wigwe.’”
Wigwe tragically lost his life in a helicopter crash in the United States, alongside his wife and son, in February. Bimbo Ogunbanjo, a former chairman of the NGX, was also on board the helicopter.
Approximately 90 minutes after the charter flight took off, the helicopter crashed south of I-15 near Halloran Springs, California, around 75 miles (120 kilometers) northeast of Barstow, as confirmed by Michael Graham, a board member of the United States National Transportation Safety Board.
Graham acknowledged the witnesses’ accounts of rainy and wintry conditions during the accident but cautioned that investigators were diligently working to ascertain the precise weather conditions at the time of the crash. Emphasizing that it marked the initial phase of a comprehensive investigation, Graham stated, “We will not jump to any conclusions.”
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported on its website that “A Eurocopter EC 130 helicopter crashed near Nipton, California, around 10 pm local time on Friday, Feb. 9. Six people were on board,” without disclosing the victims’ identities.
The FAA assured a thorough investigation, and Graham projected that it might take up to 24 months to compile a final report on the investigation.
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