MURITALA Ramat Muhammed was the charismatic General who emerged Head of State following the July 29, 1975 coup. In a counter-coup on February 13, 1976, he was cut down in a hail of bullets. The  frightened regime which survived him was shocked it had no inkling such a coup was in the offing. It, therefore, decided to establish a secret service which would combine internal security, local and foreign intelligence gathering, counter-intelligence and propaganda.