Today two things seriously hurt me. The first one, the level of corruption in public offices and the second was related to flash flood in Baghlan province which has left 50 dead. It becomes more than eight months that I am continuously paying visit to directorate of secondary education, located in Afshar area whose primary responsibility is to assess documents of school students and issue their diploma. But it has turned out to be a directorate which looks to create problem and struggle not to issue the certificate of students.

As said, I have been paying visit to the directorate for around eight months. Yesterday, when I burst in anger, one of the employees said that he did not know me. I stared at him and replied: “It has been around eight months that I am regularly visiting each department of the directorate and even dogs wandering around the building have become familiar with me. So, how you do not?”
Let me tell you the entire story behind what is going with school certificates and if by any chance any kind-hearted officials, which I seriously doubt, might do something that destiny of thousands of students hangs on. First of all, I should clearly mention that it is not about my certificate because I have already completed my higher education and have all my certificates. Feeling sympathy with thousands of students who after years of struggle and experiencing hardships in the neighboring country are looking forward to continue their higher education but merely due to high level of corruption give up education once and for all. It is just my humanitarian and patriotic feelings that have pushed me involve myself in the, seemingly, never ending headache. But who really cares about the destiny of others in this country? I think I should always keep in mind that here daily tens of people are killed and except an “oh” nobody cares about them.

The government is grasped with bunch of heartless people who are just busy in collecting the wealth and increasing their connection to maintain power, nothing else at all. For instance, on Friday when the suicide bomber attacked the caravan of Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, both national and international media highlighted the good news that nothing happened to leaders of Eslahat-wa-Hamgaraye campaign team. But none detailed about numbers of people who got killed. The report says that only 5 people were killed and 20 wounded which I personally seriously doubt because thousands of people gathered around the Arayana Kabul hotel where leaders of Eslahat-wa-Hamgaraye team made rhetoric. Two bomb blasts took place and the glasses of a market which is located around 200 meters away from the explosion shattered down. So how, it is possible that strong explosions only kill five people?

So, now Taliban proudly claim the responsibility and at the same time Kabul appreciate President Obama for releasing top Taliban leaders from Guantanamo Bay prison some of whom are responsible for murder of hundreds of people. Therefore, I say that the government is run by bunch of heartless and who never care about the civilians’ lives even. Does not it look unwise to expect them think about the destiny of thousands of students who after 12 years of struggle and waste of time and money finally left without any certificate?

Now back to the problem. Except few Afghan schools in the neighboring country, Iran, all students who are graduated in years 91, 92 years in Islamic calendar have not received their certificates. The reason is claimed to be that those schools have not followed accurately the curriculum of ministry of education. After months of frequent visit that I had from the directorate, there is nothing to be called law violation. Students have studied two subjects more in the 11th and 12th   classes, apart from all other subjects that are mandatory. On the other hand, the marks of a subject which has no book and only it is the responsibility of principles of each school to give students hundred marks by the name of Tahzib (edification) has not been included. The subject edification or called in Dari as Tahzib generally marked as 100 by the teacher as well as principles of each school. By any chance if a student’s behavior is so bad and bears serious problems with teacher, even that time, it is rarely possible that he gets less than 100.

In addition, it should be noticed that based on documents I have from the embassy of Afghanistan which is signed by the Ahmad Noor, the Afghan ambassador in Iran, the subject Tahzib was not compulsory for the mentioned particular years. So, even if it was possible, why it has not been checked properly after it got dispatched to ministry of foreign affairs?

As per procedure, the transcript of all students are collected and handed over to Afghan embassies in respective countries. After accurate assessment, the embassy will hand them over to ministry of foreign affairs department of cultural relation. After checkup and approval, the department of cultural relations of ministry of foreign affairs will send to ministry of education. And finally after the approval, ministry of education will send them to directorate of secondary education.

So, the documents which I am talking about has all successfully processed but stuck in the directorate of secondary education. The responsible staffs are arguing that why the marks of Tahzib subjects are not included and why two extra subjects studied?

Therefore, the certificates of thousands of students who studied in Iran are stuck and hundreds of them when returned and could not get their certificates returned back to neighboring country with hearts full of pain. I am sure that ethnic discrimination has a lot to do with the problem. Otherwise, how it is possible that with such a minor problem, thousands of students get deprived of their certificates?

Hence, I humbly request Mr. Farooq Wardak to formally pay attention to the problem and ask these gentlemen of Directorate of Secondary Education that why the certificates of thousands of refugees are not issued? If they have problem, so why they are not trying to solve it instead of playing with destiny of thousands of students?