General Murtala Ramat Mohammed came to power in July 1975 after the removal of General Yakubu Gowon. His arrival marked a dramatic shift in tone and tempo. He projected urgency, discipline, and impatience with delay. Within months, his government began restructuring the machinery of the Nigerian state.
His administration launched one of the most sweeping public service purges in the country’s history. Over 10,000 civil servants were dismissed. Official reasons ranged from inefficiency and malpractice to age irregularities and misconduct. The dismissals were immediate and far reaching. Entire departments were affected. Careers ended overnight.
Supporters described the action as long overdue discipline. Critics worried about speed and process. What no one disputed was the scale. The message was unmistakable, no office was immune from scrutiny.
Reform Beyond the Bureaucracy
The changes extended beyond civilian administration. The military establishment also experienced restructuring. Postings were altered. Senior figures were retired or reassigned. The consolidation of authority after a leadership change reshaped internal balances within the armed forces.
At the same time, Mohammed announced a clear political direction for the country. He declared that Nigeria would return to civilian rule by 1979. That commitment introduced a defined transition timetable and placed a clock on military governance.
In less than seven months, Nigeria’s political environment had shifted. Institutions were shaken. Expectations were reset. Timelines were announced.
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The Morning of 13 February 1976
On Saturday, 13 February 1976, Lagos became the centre of a violent power struggle. As General Mohammed travelled through the city, his motorcade was ambushed by soldiers aligned with a coup plot led by Lieutenant Colonel Bukar Suka Dimka.
The attack was swift and fatal. The Head of State was killed during the ambush. The assassination marked the opening act of a broader attempt to seize control of the Nigerian government.
The plotters moved quickly to assert authority. Strategic locations were targeted. Control of broadcasting facilities became central to the operation.
The Dimka Broadcast
During the coup attempt, Dimka issued a radio broadcast aimed at persuading the nation and the armed forces that a new leadership had taken control. In his message, he accused the government of corruption, maladministration, weak leadership, and detentions without trial. The broadcast framed the coup as an intervention to correct national direction.
The message sought legitimacy through moral and political language. It aimed to convince listeners that the action was not personal violence, but national rescue.
The attempt to secure broad support did not succeed. Military units across the country did not uniformly align with the conspirators. Loyal forces responded rapidly.
Collapse of the Coup
Within hours, resistance to the coup gathered strength. The conspirators failed to consolidate nationwide control. Communications faltered. Strategic momentum slipped.
The coup attempt collapsed. Dimka fled but was later captured. He and other participants were tried by military tribunal and executed.
The assassination had shaken the nation, but the state itself remained intact.
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Succession and Continuity
Following the failed coup, Lieutenant General Olusegun Obasanjo assumed leadership as Head of State. The transition was swift, stabilising the chain of command at a critical moment.
Obasanjo continued the transition programme that had already been announced. The 1979 timetable for civilian rule remained in place. Three years later, Nigeria formally returned to civilian governance, marking the end of that chapter of military rule.
The Legacy of a Brief Era
Murtala Mohammed’s time in office lasted only seven months, yet it remains one of the most remembered periods in Nigeria’s political history. His leadership style was direct and uncompromising. His reforms were rapid and highly visible. His death was sudden and violent.
The civil service purge reshaped administrative culture. Military restructuring altered internal alignments. The promise of civilian transition redefined national expectations.
The events of 13 February 1976 stand as a defining turning point. A leader was killed in broad daylight. A coup failed. A succession followed. A timetable toward civilian rule survived.
Nigeria’s political path continued, but it did so without the man who had accelerated its pace.
Author’s Note
Leadership can ignite change with speed and conviction, yet lasting national stability depends on institutions that endure beyond any single individual. The events of 13 February 1976 remind us that reform, ambition, and power often collide, and when they do, history can turn in a single morning.
References
Library of Congress Country Studies, Nigeria, The Regime of Murtala Mohammed
Archival reproductions of the 13 February 1976 Dimka coup broadcast
