The Turkish Government says it had alerted Nigeria about the existence of schools and hospitals owned by suspected terrorists in Nigeria.
The revelation is coming after the failed coup in the country was linked to a US General with links in Nigeria.
The government of Turkey therefore demanded that the facilities be shut down.
Turkey said on Thursday that it had officially notified the Nigerian government on the existence of the schools, which bear the name of the country but are not owned by it.
The Ambassador of Turkey to Nigeria, Mr. Hakan Cakil, while speaking to the Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senator Shehu Sani, when the latter paid the diplomat a visit at his Abuja office, said the owners of the schools sponsored the recent coup in Turkey.
Cakil said the institutions, which ranged from schools to hospitals, were allegedly owned by the Fethullah Gulen Terrorist Organisation allegedly founded by Fethullag Gulen.
The envoy stated categorically that the country does not own any school in Nigeria.
He added that similar schools established in Turkey had been shut down.
Cakil said the truth was confirmed from confessions by the coup plotters, who are currently under investigation.
He said the same syndicate which hatched the botched 15th July 2016, coup, own the schools in Nigeria.
Cakil said the organisation and its investments had enjoyed wide acceptance by the public in Turkey until suspected coupists confessed to using the organisations for terrorist activities.
He said all the schools owned by the organisation had been shut down by the Turkish government as of last week.
Cakil said: “We are requesting the Nigerian Government to close down the schools.
“I have requested officially, both orally and in writing, the closure of these schools.
“Also, I have sent a letter to Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama ( Foreign Minister) and Mr. Abba Kyari (Chief of Staff to the President) about this subject and requested their support for the closure of the schools.
“I will also send letters to the Chairmen of Committees on Foreign Affairs in the National Assembly as well as the Senate Majority Leader over the issue and I am going to enclose some documents in English on how the group members are engaged in the Army, Police and the Judiciary.
“In Nigeria, there are 17 schools, which belong to the Gulen Movement.
“One in Kano, one in Kaduna, one in Abuja, Lagos, etc and they are offering scholarships.
“We are starting some legal procedures to take the name of Turkish out of the name of the schools.
“They are not the schools of the Turkish Government.
“They are misleading the public and allocating scholarships to the children of the high bureaucracy and after they graduate from school, they send the children to Turkey to attend their universities.”
Responding, Senator Sani urged the Turkish Government to operate within the ambits of the law in bringing those responsible for the incidence to book.
Sani said: “I think the world should identify and reason with you because if the coup had succeeded, there could have been bloodshed.
“You have a legitimate right to continue to raise them and for our government to look into them.
“One thing I will say is that I will urge you to use the instrument of democracy, liberty and constitutional right to bring to book those who are involved in that.”
Following the July 15 failed coup, President Recep Erdogan of Turkey and the government had blamed Fethullah Gulen, a cleric and opposition leader, of being behind the coup.
Gullen, currently on exile in the US, has since denied the accusation.
When the Director of Press and Public Communication, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Clement Aduku, was contacted to confirm if the Turkish Government had actually issued the warning, the director said he was not aware of any letter by the Turkish mission.
“I have not seen any such of communications yet, but will find out from our principals if they have seen or received any update on the matter,” he said in an SMS.
