Forty-nine years after, the assassination of General Murtala Ramat Muhammed, Nigeria’s fourth commander-in-chief of the armed lingers in Nigeria’s history. February 13 may not be a national day in Nigeria, but it is symbolic for those who are conscious of the historical evolution of Nigeria and its experience with military interventions in governance. 

The coup that led to the killing of General Muhammed was the fourth in the country and remains one of the saddest days in Nigeria’s history as the military head of state was murdered in a broad daylight, alongside his aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Akintunde Akinsehinwa in his black Mercedes Benz saloon car. 

The bullet-riddled car, which is still parked at the National Museum, Onikan, Lagos, often reminds visitors and those around the premises of the February 13, 1976 tragedy of how a lofty vision was cut short by the coupists, led by Colonel Bukar Sukar Dimka of the Physical Training Corps of the Nigerian Army.

As the country commemorates the 49th anniversary of the bloody coup today, our correspondent, who was at the National Museum in Lagos some minutes past 11am, observed that the national monument was calm and open for the day’s business without any commemorative activities.

Except a group of pupils who came on excursion, there was no other visitor as at the time our correspondents left the museum.

The pupils were excited as they were taken through the February 13, 1976 event in less than an hour. For them, it was history told in a hurry but a symbolic one. The Mercedes Benz captures part of Nigerian history.

During the visit, Weekend Trust observed the black Mercedes Benz 230.6 pierced with bullets on the wind screen and the back screen and left side glasses all damaged.

The tyres were also pierced, but the flags at the edge of the bonnet remain intact.

 

‘Murtala’s vehicle symbolises Nigeria’s struggles’

In an interview with Weekend Trust, the Assistant Director, Education Department of the National Museum, Lagos, Adesheri Linda, described the vehicle as a symbol of history, saying it depicts struggle for leadership.

“The vehicle tells more as it depicts where we are coming from and where we are going. That is why it is a national monument; and that is why you see school students come here for history. They want to know what happened and how it happened,” she said.

She narrated the sequence of the events, saying it is important that Nigeria remains a united, indivisible entity to prevent a recurrence of that episode.

“We use it to teach them unity. They were four in the car: the head of state, his security detail, driver and secretary. Three of them died, but one of them survived.

“They dumped all of them in the mortuary; it was later that they realised that one of them was breathing and they brought him out. That is Pa Mike, an Igala man from Kogi. He is still alive,” she said.

 

Crumbling cenotaph

Weekend Trust also observed that the cenotaph of the late head of state, which was erected in 1992 by the old Eti Osa Local Government at the spot he was assassinated, has been left to virtually crumble as there are visible structural defects. The two symbolic guns look rotten and the epitaph in a white tile has faded completely.

 

Murtala’ assassination was the darkest moment in Nigeria’s history – Labour leader

Speaking with our correspondents, Comrade Emeka Nkwaola, the deputy-general secretary of the National Union of Textile Workers, was nostalgic about Murtala’s short stint as head of state, describing his death as one of the darkest moments in the country’s history.

“It is a sad story for us in Nigeria that a head of state was gruesomely murdered in a coup. That’s one of the darkest moments of our history as a country. His legacy lives on. One of the major airports in the country was named after him to further demonstrate the fact that Nigeria misses and values him.

“He was very active during the civil war. We don’t wish for such a situation again in our country. We want our leaders to serve and live at the appointed time stipulated for them in the constitution,” he said.

The labour leader said that although he was a military head of state, Murtala Mohammed was a respecter of rule of law; hence he tried to obey traffic law, which aided his assassination. 

“As at the time he was head of state, Murtala Mohammed used to obey the traffic. He was in traffic when he was ambushed, but today, many of our leaders are always on convoys and they don’t obey traffic laws.  

“Leaders must obey traffic rules; this madness of sirens must stop. Murtala Mohammed never used sirens. He felt there was no need because he had not done anything wrong. But today, that is not the case,” he said.