It demanded that the facilities be shut down.

Turkey said 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.

Sani was there in company with select journalists, including our correspondent.

The envoy said the institutions, which ranged from schools to hospitals, were
allegedly owned by the Fethullah Gulen Terrorist Organisation allegedly founded
by Fethullag Gulen.

The Turkish government, which stated that the country does not own any school
in Nigeria, said similar schools established in Turkey had been shut down.

According to the ambassador, confessions by the coup plotters, who are
currently under investigation, have indicated that the same syndicate which
hatched the botched July 15, 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.

But when contacted, the Director of Press and Public Communication, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, Dr. Clement Aduku, said he was not aware of the 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.