The schools, based in Nairobi, Mombasa and Malindi, were set up from 1998 by the Omeriye Foundation and offer the Kenyan 8-4-4 curriculum as well as the British curriculum.
“Turkish officials have requested Kenya to shut down the Gulenist schools on a number of occasions before the attempted coup but the Kenyan government has not acted on them,” the source told Reuters.
A rift between the Turkish government and a Muslim cleric blamed for the failed coup has sparked diplomatic tensions in Nairobi as Turkey seeks to close schools associated with the imam.
The Turkish ambassador in Nairobi has been seeking a meeting for over two weeks to discuss the closure of the schools associated with Fethullah Gulen, a Reuters report says.
Turkish authorities have stepped up the global pressure to close educational institutions associated with a movement of Gulen followers including six Kenyan schools operating under the name of Light Academy and Light International School.
Reuters quoted a Foreign Affairs source saying that the Turkish ambassador has been seeking a meeting since July 15 but this is yet to be scheduled. The request for a meeting comes with Kenya having failed to act on previous requests from Turkey to close the schools.
Shut down the Gulenist schools
“Turkish officials have requested Kenya to shut down the Gulenist schools on a number of occasions before the attempted coup but the Kenyan government has not acted on them,” the source told Reuters.
Foreign Affairs secretary Amina Mohamed did not respond to our calls and text message on the government’s reaction to the Turkish request for closure of the institutions.
The schools, based in Nairobi, Mombasa and Malindi, were set up from 1998 by the Omeriye Foundation and offer the Kenyan 8-4-4 curriculum as well as the British curriculum.
The request for closure is likely to test the two countries relations following the recent visit by Turkey President Recep Erdogan that was billed as boosting the bonds.
President Uhuru Kenyatta in June hosted Mr Erdogan with the Financial Times saying that one of the key objectives of the trip was to deter residents from using the schools in a bid to break Mr Gulen’s sway.
But the Light Academy schools have enjoyed good relations with the State for years including student visits to State House and visits from senior government officials.
Mr Gulen, a 77-year-old imam, left Turkey for the United States in 1999 and has been living in self-imposed exile in America since then.
Mr Erdogan has accused him of being the mastermind behind the failed July 15 coup where over more than people were killed, a charge Mr Gulen has denied.
Since the coup, the Turkey government has gone after Gulen-linked schools across the world. Somalia has since shut down the schools. Pakistan has handed over the schools to a Turkish government organisation. Nigeria and the US are yet to make a decision while Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have rebuffed the requests.
