Video clips showing mass cheating by the students appearing in the board exams at the various exam centres in the province of Sindh did not surprise me at all. Where we have cheaters at every level of our hierarchy in the government who evade taxes, make bogus bills to swindle state money, appoint their blue-eyed on key appointments without any merit, get elected on fake degrees and on bogus votes, misappropriate government funds, approve projects only on the surety of getting kickbacks, defy Supreme Court judgements etc, we give birth to the next generation of cheaters who watch their elders doing all this hanky panky.
All such things happen when there is poor management, the top men are appointed without merit and there is no accountability at any level. There were times when one could not imagine cheating or missing any class.
In these video clips, one could see the helplessness of the invigilators and the police. In fact, they were facilitating the process instead of making unfair means cases against the students. The students were getting question papers one-two hours later than the scheduled time and at some centres the candidates could buy the paper half an hour before the time for meagre Rs 50 per paper. The solved papers were available for Rs 100 to the candidates in the examination hall after the start of the paper. The candidates were seen copying directly from the books and notes were taken along in the exam centres.
On the other hand, the provincial education minister Pir Mazharul Haq is saying that it is not his job to stop cheating. Instead of resigning as minister, he blames his subordinate staff for mismanagement. Perhaps, he does not know that entire education and exam system under him is fully corrupt and he is responsible for it. Why could he not take stern action against superintendents at the concerned centres by getting them dismissed from service? Only a couple of such exemplary punishments would stop cheating business in future exams.
MUHAMMAD AZHAR KHWAJA
Lahore
