Disregard call to close Turkish schools – Proprietors tell Nigerian govt


Date posted: July 29, 2016

YEMI OLUWADARE

Owners of the Nigeria Turkish International College have urged Nigeria to disregard the call by the Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Hakan Cakil, to close its schools in the country.

The proprietors said Cakil’s statement was flawed with ulterior motives.

The proprietors of the schools made the call through a statement signed by its Managing Director, Orhan Kermit, on Friday.

Kermit said the school did not have anything to do with the Turkish government; rather it is a privately funded institution by a group of Turkish investors.

He described the school as only Turkish in Name but Nigerian in deeds. He said the school was founded in 1998 with a philosophy hinged on dialogue, love and tolerance.

“The general public is at the moment urged to ignore and disregard the statement by the Turkish ambassador. Our school is fully functional and would continue to be,” Kermit wrote in the statement.

The Government of Turkey through its ambassador, Cakil had on Thursday said it alerted the Nigerian Government to the existence of schools owned by suspected terrorists.

Advertisement

The ambassador had called on the country to shut down the schools, just like the Turkish government did in Turkey.

The ambassador had held that there are 17 of such schools in Nigeria, which bear the name of Turkey” but were not owned by the European country.

Cakil said the institutions, which ranged from schools to hospitals, were allegedly owned by the Fethullah Gulen Terrorist Organisation.

A document released by the Turkish embassy had listed the indicted schools and institutions as Surat Educational Limited, Abuja; Nigerian-Turkish International School, in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, Yobe, Ogun and Lagos; and the Nigerian-Turkish Nile University, Abuja.

It had also indicted The Association of Businessmen and Investors of Nigeria and Turkey/Abinat, Abuja and Lagos; Ufuk Dialogue Foundation, Abuja; Nigerian-Turkish Nizamiye Hospital, Abuja; and Vefa Travel Agency, Abuja.

Ambassador Cakil had made the call while speaking to the Vice-Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Shehu Sani, when the latter paid the diplomat a visit at his Abuja office.

Source: Today , July 29, 2016

Tags: | | | | |


Related News

Mali education minister lauds teachers in nation’s Turkish schools

Mali’s Minister of Higher Education and Research Messaoud Ould Mohamed Lahbib: The Hizmet movement, which drives the philosophy behind Turkish schools in the country, does not work like a corporate organization. “This is why I am sure that God will give, and is giving, rewards to Turks,” he said. “The sacrifice being made by teachers who work at Turkish schools in his country is worthy of high praise, adding that he believes no other nation would be willing to make such a great contribution to Mali,” he said.

Erdoğan, Hizmet, assassins

Former Interior Minister Idris Naim Şahin stated that “the government is run by a small oligarchic elite in a way that excludes broad segments of the party constituency and the Turkish people” is very explanatory vis-à-vis Mr. Erdoğan’s shockingly undemocratic and increasingly authoritarian performance over the last two years, since he received 50 per cent of the vote in the 2011 general elections.

Ministerial bureaucrats being purged over their alleged affiliations with Hizmet

Radikal said the only criteria in these purges is the “parallel state,” a term the government uses to define those bureaucrats known to favor the Hizmet movement, which is a grassroots movement based on voluntary participation to spread interfaith dialogue and tolerance with a particular emphasis on education.

While Erdogan Demonizes a Peaceful Movement, International Community Applauds Them.

It is no secret that the corruption scandal on December 17, 2013 that encircled the Turkish government was one of the biggest threats to Erdogan’s rule since he took the office in 2003.

Rumi Forum chooses solutions to problems for essay contest

The Rumi Forum, an international organization established by Turks living in Washington, D.C., to foster intercultural dialogue, has chosen the Hizmet movement and solutions to today’s problems as the topic for this year’s essay contest.

Parents seeking urgent Release of School Principle Fatih Keskin

“As parents, as we are concerned about the way the principal of this school is treated, and we expect information on the further development of the situation regarding the treatment of the principal,” parents stated, adding that they request to be informed on the reasons for the arrest as soon as possible.

Latest News

Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison

Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney

Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement

ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment

New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement

European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests

ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases

Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade

Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet

In Case You Missed It

Turkish schools key to success in Africa

AK Party Deputy Chairman Huseyin Celik: Turkish teachers beat the odds

Taiwanese scholar: Hizmet movement bears similarities to Confucianism

Pioneer Academy of Science to Move to a New Campus

Kurdish problem, PKK, AKP, Hizmet movement

Erdoğan draws ire from all segments of society over bid to close Turkish schools

New Book – The House of Service: The Gülen Movement and Islam’s Third Way (New York: Oxford University Press)

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News