fiftieth Independence Celebration: Angola Govt to Honour Nigeria’s Ex-President Murtala Muhammed

As a part of actions marking the fiftieth Anniversary of Angola’s Independence, the Authorities of the Republic of Angola, below the management of President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, has introduced the conferment of a Nationwide Order of Honour on Nigeria’s late Head of State, Basic Murtala Ramat Muhammed, GCFR.

In accordance with an official communication addressed to the household of the late Basic and signed by H.E. Ambassador José Bamoquina Zau, Angola’s Ambassador to Nigeria, the honour acknowledges Basic Murtala Muhammed’s decisive management and Nigeria’s steadfast assist for Angola’s political emancipation throughout one of the crucial essential intervals of its historical past.

“On behalf of His Excellency João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, we’re happy to tell you that His Excellency Murtala Ramat Muhammed, former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, will likely be embellished on November sixth with the Class of Honour Medal, as a part of the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of our independence,” the letter acknowledged.

“This Medal of Honour is conferred in recognition of the unwavering assist and solidarity prolonged by Basic Murtala Muhammed and the Nigerian individuals in the direction of the political emancipation of the Republic of Angola.”

The popularity is deeply symbolic. In 1975, at a time when a lot of Africa was nonetheless below colonial domination, Basic Murtala Muhammed took a daring and historic stand by formally recognizing and increasing Nigeria’s diplomatic assist to the In style Motion for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) — a transfer that defied international stress and aligned Nigeria squarely with the forces of African freedom. His ethical readability and swift motion galvanized continental solidarity, remoted apartheid South Africa’s interventionist agenda, and helped safe Angola’s independence on 11 November 1975.

Practically 5 a long time later, the Angolan nation now honours that braveness and conviction. The award serves not solely as a tribute to Murtala Muhammed’s Pan-African imaginative and prescient but in addition as a reaffirmation of Africa’s collective reminiscence — a reminder that the continent’s independence was gained by means of acts of unity, sacrifice, and principled management.

Basic Murtala Muhammed’s legacy continues to echo throughout Africa — within the values of self-determination, accountability, and ethical governance that his brief however transformative management embodied. This recognition by Angola thus stands as a historic and deeply transferring testomony to his enduring place amongst Africa’s liberators and conscience leaders.