Former name(s) | Kaduna Race Course |
---|---|
Namesake | Murtala Ramat Muhammed |
Maintained by | Kaduna State |
Location | Kaduna, Kaduna State, Nigeria |
North | Race Course Road |
East | Race Course Road |
South | Muhammadu Buhari Way (Waff Road) |
West | Independence Way |
Construction | |
Completion | c. 1950 |
Murtala Muhammed Square is a public square in the City of Kaduna, Kaduna State, Nigeria formerly known as the Kaduna Race Course. Its renamed in honour of the then military Head of State Murtala Ramat Muhammed. [1] [2]
It includes recreational and sporting facilities such as gymnasiums, indoor sport hall, football fields, and a hockey pitch.
The Square is also the venue of the Kaduna Polo Club ground, Kaduna State Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture, Umaru Musa Yaradua Indoor Sport Hall among others.
International, national and local celebrations have been taken place in the Square since it inception, annual and occasional celebrations like Kaduna Grand Durbar, Kaduna Centenary Celebrations, Nigeria's Independence Day, May Day, Inauguration Ceremony of Governors, Army Day, Human Rights Day etc. [3]
Murtala Ramat Muhammed ; 8 November 1938 – 13 February 1976) was a Nigerian military officer and the fourth head of state of Nigeria. He led the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup in overthrowing the military regime of Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and featured prominently during the Nigerian Civil War and thereafter ruled Nigeria from 29 July 1975 until his assassination on 13 February 1976. This period in Nigerian history, from the Northern counter-coup victory to Murtala's death, is commonly associated with the institutionalization of the military in Nigerian politics.
Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade center and a major transportation hub as the gateway to northern states of Nigeria, with its rail and important road network.
Kaduna State is a state in the northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna, which was the 8th largest city in the country as of 2006. Created in 1967 as North-Central State, which also encompassed the modern Katsina State, Kaduna State achieved its current borders in 1987. Kaduna State is the fourth largest and third most populous state in the country, Kaduna State is nicknamed the Centre of Learning, owing to the presence of numerous educational institutions of importance within the state such as Ahmadu Bello University.
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The 1966 Nigerian Counter-coup was the second of many military coups in Nigeria. It was masterminded by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed and many other northern military officers. The coup began as a mutiny at roughly midnight of 28 July 1966 and was a reaction to the killings of Northern politicians and officers by some soldiers on 15 January 1966. The coup resulted in the murder of Nigeria's first military Head of State General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and Lt Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi in Ibadan by disgruntled northern non-commissioned officers (NCOs). Upon the termination of Ironsi's government, Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon was appointed Head of State by the coup conspirators.
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