General Murtala Ramat Muhammed:
Tribute to an African Hero.
By
Aliyu A. Ammani
aaammani@yahoo.co.uk
Throughout the world and across all ages
and climes, there have been a handful of outstanding personalities who
have left their marks indelibly in the sands of history of the lands
and nations in which they have lived. These were the heroes who
sacrificed tremendously to change the course of history among their
peoples.
The communities that constitute today’s
Nigeria have each its own heroes. At the national arena, most of those
we referred to as our heroes have fallen victims of what I called
the Zik Syndrome, what Kole Omotosho described as a repeat of Zik
of Africa, Zik of Nigeria, Zik of Eastern Region, Zik of Onitsha and
finally ordinary Zik. Put on a pedestal was General Murtala Ramat
Muhammed, our national, nay African hero.
General Yakubu Gowon fought to keep
Nigeria one. Some of us can still recall his war slogan: To Keep
Nigeria One is a Task that Must be Done. He would have been our
version of Abraham Lincoln, not for the fact that he overstayed his
welcome. The civil war hero Yakubu Gowon’s administration of Nigeria
was characterized by what Nigerians believed to be inertia, lethargy,
corruption and decadence. The last straw that broke the camel’s back
was Gowon’s reneged on his 1970 promise to return the nation to
democratic rule in 1976, describing the date as unrealistic, that 6
years was too short a period for his Military Government to accomplish
its reconstruction programme and preparation for the return to
democratic rule.
On Tuesday the 29th of July
1975 the Military struck for the third time in our nation’s history.
The inept administration of General Gowon was toppled in a mercifully
bloodless coup, the first in our nation’s history of military
incursion in politics. The task of cleansing the Augean stable rested
on the shoulders of Brigadier Murtala Ramat Muhammed. Thus began, the
199 most dynamic, pragmatic, breathtaking, purpose driven, result
oriented period of our country’s political history.
This Friday, the 13th day of
February 2009 is the 1722nd Friday and exactly 33 years
from the very day some disgruntled elements within the Nigerian Armed
Forces murdered, in cold blood, General Murtala Muhammed in an attempt
to take over power. Never in the history of Nigeria was any Nigerian
mourned by the totality of Nigerians as was General Murtala. His death
was an intensely and intimately felt national loss. Though the coup
plotters succeeded in snuffing out the flame, the coup was abortive.
The rest is history.
This write-up is an attempt to
commemorate the death and immortality of General Murtala Ramat
Muhammed, the dynamism of his 199 days leadership of the Nigerian
nation, what was referred to as the 200 Days of Ramatism.
Brigadier Murtala Ramat Muhammad had not
wanted to be Head of State. But he had been the choice of the coup
plotters known then as the Junta, since the day in April when a
few of them, distraught over the state of the country, began to
conceive the idea of the coup. When after the successful completion of
the coup on the 29th of July 1975, the Junta
leaders: Colonels Joe Garba, Abdullahi Mohammed and Shehu ‘Yar’adua
offered the leadership of the Nigerian nation to Murtala, he burst out
“To hell with you! I have said I don’t want to be anybody’s Head of
State”. Murtala was the ace of the ruling triumvirate proposed by
the Junta, and when he declined their offer, they offered the
leadership first to Brigadier Obasanjo and then to Brigadier T. Y.
Danjuma, but both declined; supporting Murtala as the obvious choice
and imploring the Junta to do all they could to persuade him.
When Murtala finally accepted to be Head of State, nobody then knew
that he was making a pact with history and destiny to make the supreme
sacrifice for the Nigerian nation 199 days later.
Murtala jolted a sleeping nation into
life. The vibrancy in his voice was arresting. The fire in his eyes
charmed and awed the nation. In contrast to the extravagant style of
Gowon, Murtala adopted a low profile policy. The 504 replaced Mercedes
Benz as the official government car. Only the Head of State rode a
Mercedes Benz: not bullet proof and not the 600 series type.
For the 200 days Murtala was Head of
State, he lived in the house he had occupied as Director of Army
Signal Corps. He drove to work at the Dodan Barracks every morning
from his house accompanied by his driver, his orderly and his ADC. No
convoy. No sirens. No outriders. Few days after his assumption of
office, Murtala shunned the sirens and convoy and rode alone with his
driver, from Lagos to Kano , a journey of more than one thousand
kilometers, in his personal car.
Murtala had never detained a single
person in the 6 months that he led the Nigerian nation. When former
Lagos University Law Lecturer Dr. Obarogie Ohonbamu wrote in his
magazine African Spark that Murtala had corruptly enriched
himself before becoming Head of State, and accused him of owing fleets
of trailers and rows of houses; Murtala did not descend on him with
his heavy booth as most military dictators, he quietly went to
Igbosere magistrate court and sued Ohonbamu for libel. The then
Federal Director of Public Prosecution on behalf of the Attorney
General of the federation promised that Ohonbanu would be given “every
reasonable opportunity to prove or justify his assertion” including
“freedom of the (entire) country of Nigeria to enable him search for
and obtain his proof” because “we do not intend to muzzle anyone. The
whole nation was interested in the validity of the assertion
complained of.” At the last hearing, the case was adjourned till the
17th of March 1976. Murtala was assassinated on the 13th
of February.
In an interview with The Punch of
May 4th 1982, the late Chief MKO Abiola, a very close
friend of Murtala, said that Murtala had only seven naira twenty-two
kobo (N7.22) in his bank account when he died.
To repudiate the accommodation of bad
conduct by the Gowon’s administration and to strengthen the civil
service, Murtala embarked on the purges that were considered as a
great show of bravado. About 10,000 civil servants were dismissed or
retired on grounds of corruption, indolence, redundancy, declining
productivity or health.
To wipe out emotional attachments to the
regions of the first republic and foster national unity, Murtala not
only took over the then regionally owned Universities of Ife and that
of Ahmadu Bello in Zaria , but also declared that “States will no
longer be described by reference to geographical points such as North
and South, East or West.” Thus the then North Central became the old
Kaduna State , Mid West became the old Bendel State and South Eastern
State became the old Cross River State .
Panels were set up, and their findings
and recommendations put to meaningful use. Murtala created 7 new
states bringing the number to 19 following the acceptance of the
Justice Ayo Irikefe Panel to examine the agitation for more states.
The new Federal Capital Authority Abuja, following the acceptance of
the Akinola Aguda Panel.
Murtala in his only Independence Day
broadcast enunciated an ambitious five-stage political programme that
ushered in democratic rule by October 1979. On the 18th of
October 1975, Murtala set-up the Constitution Drafting Committee, to
fashion out a constitution for Nigeria . In the view of West Africa:
“Never in the history of Africa have so many people been consulted so
thoroughly about how they wished to be governed.” Credit must be given
to General Olusegun Obasanjo for the faithfulness and courage with
which he successfully executed the concrete and meaningful programmes
that General Murtala mapped out for Nigeria .
Murtala pursued an aggressive foreign
policy with Africa as its centre piece. He made it clear to Colonel
Joe Garba, his foreign Minister, that he wanted a very activist
foreign policy. Nigeria , he said, must be visible in the world.
Murtala demonstrated a radical impulse in foreign policy. His message
to the close of the Ghana-Nigeria Games held in Accra in the August of
1975 reads “Any glib talk about African unity does not mean much if
the desire is not subjected to test.”
On the 11th of January 1976,
an extra-ordinary meeting of the OAU heads of Government was convened
to tackle the Angolan question. Initially, Murtala showed little
interest in attending the conference; Obasanjo was making preparations
to make an appearance in his place. Suddenly an event happened that
made him changed his mind and compelled him to make the historic and
flamboyant appearance at the conference where he gave the powerful
Africa has come of Age speech.
On the 3rd of January 1976,
the American Ambassador to Nigeria , Mr. Donald Easum, brought a
letter addressed to the Nigerian Head of State from the United States
President Gerald Ford. The same letter was sent to many African
leaders. Murtala was furious. Not only did the Federal Military
Government take the bold and unprecedented step of releasing President
Ford’s letter to the press, it also issued a strong response to it
later that evening calling it a “gross insult” and in sum, telling the
Americans to go to hell. This event triggered Murtala’s decision to
attend the conference and deliver his message to the world.
“Mr. Chairman, when I contemplate the
evils of apartheid, my heart bleeds and I am sure the heart of every
true blooded African bleeds.” Thus, Murtala opened the powerful and
deep moving Africa has come of Age speech. “Rather than join
hands with the forces fighting for self-determination and against
racism and apartheid, the United States policy makers clearly decided
that it was in the best interests of their country to maintain white
supremacy and minority regimes in Africa … Africa has come of age.
It’s no longer under the orbit of any extra continental power. It
should no longer take orders from any country no matter how powerful…
gone are the days when Africa will ever bow to the threat of any
so-called superpower…” There was thunderous ovation from the Africa
Hall and Murtala Muhammed went back to his seat, little knowing that
he had exactly 34 days more to live.
Murtala’s forceful delivery of an
already tough speech literally grounded the anti MPLA forces. He
engaged himself in visiting and lobbying other heads of state to
support the MPLA. According to Joe Garba, Murtala daily chalked up in
his office the number of the countries Nigeria converted to the MPLA
side. Murtala’s support for the MPLA, which not only USA and Britain
were fiercely opposing but even the Saudi government was opposing by
funding the FNLA, goes a long way to show Murtala’s bold, decisive and
patriotic stand on Southern Africa . “Murtala established very
forcefully” wrote Patrick Wilmot “that the fight was between African
Nationalism, the right of the Blackman to freedom, and Western
Imperialism… There was no question of Apartheid South Africa fighting
the political red herring of ‘International Communism.’
Murtala was a military leader who did
not seize power himself, but was invited, by the coup makers, to lead
the Federal Military Government, because of the confidence they had in
him being the most suitable to give Nigeria the dynamic, purposeful
and efficient leadership it required. Nigerians identified with
Murtala because he did what he said he came to do and much more. His
bold, assertive, proactive leadership gave Nigerians a sense of
belonging, hope and strength in the Nigeria project. Like the twinkle
of a star, General Murtala Ramat Muhammed entered and departed the
Nigerian, African nay world’s political arena. The impact of his
charismatic and dynamic leadership permeates every facet of the
Nigerian nation. The name Murtala will be with us forever.
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