Murtala Muhammed was assassinated while trying to end corruption, indiscipline in Nigeria — Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed that late former Head of State,General Murtala Muhammed was working towards restoring indisciplineand corruption in Nigeria when he was assassinated.Speaking at the 40th Memorial Lecture of the former Head of State inAbuja on Saturday, Buhari also urged Nigerians to emulate the life andcharacter of Murtala."Buhari said, “On assuming the role of Head of State in 1975, Murtalaset out with a single-minded determination seldom seen in Nigerianleadership. Decisions were on fast-
track.According to Buhari, the late Head of State demonstrated rare courage and necessary leadership skill, sayingthat his preoccupation was to fast-track decisions to herald the progress of Nigeria.Buhari said two major efforts of the late Muhammed that yielded positive result for the country among his other legacies were the move of the capital to Abuja from Lagos; and the creation of seven additional states and turning Nigeria to 19 states."He said, “On the 13th of February 1976, Nigeria suffered a grievousblow with the assassination of Murtala Muhammad in a failed coupd’état. The country mourned, and rightly so, because Murtala had beenon his way to putting Nigeria back to the path of order anddiscipline, after years of drift, corruption and near despair. Itwould not be over-stating the case to say that Nigeria lost itsnewly-found momentum with Murtala’s demise.“His life, though short, was marked by an extraordinary passion, energy and determination to do better, and to make Nigeria better. These are values that young and old alike shouldall remember and celebrate.”Recalling the great military exploit under Mohammed during the civilwar, Buhari said, “By the time Murtala was given Command during theCivil War, the Federal side was on the defensive. The rebels hadover-ran the then Mid-West, and reached as far as Ore, just 100 milesfrom Lagos. By dint of sheer bravery, improvisation andresourcefulness, he mustered a rag-tag group of soldiers, integratedthem into an entirely new division, knocked them into fighting shape,recovered Mid-West and ventured across the Niger. Alas, there wereterrible casualties on both sides.“But Murtala’s motto was to get the job done as quickly as possible;sacrifice and loss were part of the risks of war. Relations betweenMurtala and some other senior officers were not always easy. But noone could doubt his inspirational qualities or call into question hislove and dedication in the service of Nigeria.