From Netherland to Germany, United Kingdom to United States; Nigerian youths in the Diaspora are gradually becoming receptive to the poisonous ideology of Islamic violent extremism and this is quite worrying.
In the United Kingdom, Nigerian parents are more affected than other ethnic minority groups in the community on the issue of gun and knife crime with Nigerian prisoners second highest next to the Jamaican prisoners in UK cells!
The reality of the adverse impact of low level crime in our community is only revealed when you consider the British-Nigerian concept; then it becomes clearer that we are closer to the tipping point than previously realised.
After the 7th July suicide bomber blast in the United Kingdom; most of the innovative and diabolical attacks in mainland Britain or terrorism threats could be linked to a Nigerian in the Diaspora from the pants bomber to the Woolwich killers and the Dare ISIS Advert promo . . . There is no doubt in my mind that the Diaspora community needs to wake up to the reality that we have the good, the bad and the ugly knocking on the door of the community right now.
The ugly aspect is more likely to damage the Nigeria Plc brand and this is a wake-up call to Nigeria Diaspora community leaders to declare an emergency and seek help promptly.
Apart from this recent stabbing in Germany, a Nigerian was also arrested over is message about ISIS on social media and similar arrest happened in Manchester.
Nigerian youths are travelling to Syria from the UK, Netherland and other European countries. Do we have the capacity to handle the issue in our community?
We need to act fast!
•Temitope Olodo (shown in photo) is a Preventive Terrorism Expert and Author based in the United Kingdom. He is also the chairperson of Nigeria Diaspora Security Forum. He can be reached via yolodo@yahoo.com
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