Following reports of recruitment of young people into the swelling ranks of terrorists groups such as ISIS in Ghana, coupled with the threat of terrorist activity in the sub-region, the Vice Chancellors Ghana, has revealed intentions to boost IT surveillance on the campuses of public universities.
This also follows a National Security alert indicating that terrorist group Islamic State (ISIS), is actively recruiting students to join their fold.
Following the recruitment of a KNUST graduate, Mohammed Nazir Nortei Alema, by ISIS last year, the Ministry of Education tasked authorities at the universities to lead the charge in combating the terrorist recruitment on campuses.
ISIS agents are known for recruiting young people after urging them to join radical online forums but Mohammed Nazir and another person, identified only as Rafiq, remain the only confirmed Ghanaians to have traveled to join ISIS.
Mohammed Nazir was suspected to have been engaged through one of such radical forums on Facebook before his recruitment and departure to join ISIS.
Although Nazir is said to have been killed during ISIS activity in Nigeria, the Chancellors say they are taking all the measures needed to keep the universities and Ghana safe.
Speaking to Citi News, the Chairman of the Vice Chancellors Ghana, Professor Domwini Kuupole, stated that their focus on IT security is because the method of the terrorists recruitment, is mainly via the internet and social media.
According to him, “what we are doing is, we are asking our IT directors to monitor the information that comes through our IT infrastructure.”
Professor Kuupole also noted that security officials are monitoring the movement of suspicious characters on the various campuses saying, “We are asking our security to also monitor the movement of people on campus.”
