Case in a point that I would like to share with  you  is my true story, that I and thousands of Iraqi high school students faced in Iraq. The Iraqi government since 1962 until now,  without exception,  steal and force the Ministry of Education to send a copies of the high school international exams (bachelors exam) to the government office under strict control and privacy, Later some of those official copies and the questions along with the answers were sent to specific family members in the Iraqi government elite force, to the army and their generals,  to many other family members from certain groups and clans who have family members in high school were about to write the national exam.

They handed the question to them with a warning to not share the questions with any other students. In return those students will pass the national exam with high mark and guarantee their entree to the medical school, engineering school, law, science school, etc.  Of course they will keep doing this until they graduate and get the top jobs and control other minorities. Some even sale those questions to others from within the government.

I remember when I was in high school grade 12, about to take my national exam, the teacher asked many students to attend a very important meeting. 90% of the students attended the principle meeting 60 days prior to the national exam. He started to tell us about the Ministry of Education new memo to remove many topics, questions, items and reading materials from the final exam , and  all those items will not be covered and we should not read them or pay attention to them.

Those topics were from Arabic and English subjects, religion  to physics and chemistry, math and biology, etc. We were so happy with the announcement as it was good news and we had less to read and feel better facing the exams.  Little that we know at that time,  it was a trapped and a lie manipulation.  The government fabricated this memo to cheat the students, and deliberately tried to mislead us so we fail or take a lower mark.

The 10 % of the students that did not show on the meeting  were all connected to well known families and clan, either connected to the party or some government officials. Those students  were excelled in the exam with fine colors. only very few of us did not believe the government agenda so they read all subjects but I didn’t. Like a good sheep I followed the order of the conniving shepherd and read only the material that outlined by the Ministry.

When I attended my national exam, I was ready, had a good night sleep, ate my breakfast, sharpened my pencils and took my eraser and pencil sharpener with me. I sat in my marked student chair with my ID number and the instructor gave us the exam envelopes.

The first day was the Arabic literature and Religious study. I was surprised the first question came was one of don’t read and deleted topic and it was compulsory to answer it or else we lose a mark of 25 points.  I was so upset and angry for believing  the ministry who told us not to read those topics and they told us it will be not covered.  After we had the exams, we made a complaint, some were kicked out of the room, others were scared to talk. It was upsetting to some students, they came to school at night and burned the school and I lost 25 points. I dont understand why I listened to the stupid principle. I said to my self, why I was a stupid sheep, I’m still asking my self. But I still eat lamb, lol.

In Iraq now days 1+1= 3 for sure .Because you have to pay a third person always to get your job done.

 

 

By then I started to know that it was a lie but it was too late as I lost 25 point in Arabic and 25 point in Religious study . I did good in the rest of the subjects from day 2 to day 5 but my final mark was below the good universities level. Many other students had the same problem.We asked why they did it, but the ministry denied receiving any memo. The principles were told to shut their mouths and say no comments, They blamed the error on typing etc. Some Iraqi students who had scored bad results in the exams,  they retaliated and captured one of those principles and took him away to isolated area and threatened to kill him unless he tell them why he lied.

The principle confessed that it wasn’t him. He was ordered by his superior to make sure that majority of the students dont pass the level of 70%  mark.

The students asked why at him. I was closed to him and I really did protect him from them. He told us that the government wanted a high number of students to fill the middle and lower jobs that no one want to take like x-ray, lab, and other allied health technology. The government only  selected number of students will go to the medical schools and other specific schools.

So it was all designed by the government to control who and where they go. Some smart students did pass without any support and scored the high marks and were able to enter the universities of their choice, but those are few. Those angered students let the principle go with a warning that they will kill him and his family if he ever complaint, so he shut his mouth and moved to different town. I believed he is now in Australia.

When I went to the Allied health science school, my marks was good to take the top selection in the Allied health school but wasn’t good enough to go to the university.

The next day I took the bus and went to the college. I was first to arrive at the gate and stood since 6 a.m.  The door  will  be open at 8 a.m, the guard said. It is OK I will wait , I said. When the door was opened, I thought I was first in line but I was wrong again. There was a line of gypsy girls from south Iraq, They were all connected to the ruling party of Iraq. They slept over night in the college, which was not allowed at that time,  it should be first come first serve and it should be depending on the mark.


When the line was moving and those gypsy girls were going to select the course, they all were so happy and selected what they want  and that was the physician assistant course, and that was what I was aiming at . I asked those gypsy girls about their marks and some of them told me that they had 50 to 56 % mark ( In Iraq the passing mark is 50) , so I was so happy because i had 76%  and I thought it will be easy for me. When I arrived to the Dean room and the registrar who met the students  asked me what course I want to select, I said “Physician assistant please”.     

‘Physician assistant course (emqaboot) means full and closed’ he said. Why, i asked? he told me that first come first serve and all the people before me took this course. But sir those gypsy girls had 50% marks and I have 76% and that is not fair, I said. 

They are before you and you should select different course, he screamed at me. But I was the first at the gate and the guard was my witness, I said. Those gypsy girls were here against the regulation and no one was before me, I told him. 

Do you think I am lying , he shouted . Yes I said. The guards now were ready to kick me out. I thought to my self I better select what ever I can before it is too late. Then i selected the x-ray course.

 Good for you, dont be sad we need people like you and you will be happy in this course, they told me. I was so sad and so upset about the injustice, the lies, the corruption, and the manipulation of the Iraqi system. I walked home planning to run away from this evil country. On my out of the college I saw the car of the Dean,  let me put it that way,  I gave his car a piece of my mind ,and my anger, there were no cameras at that time.

Since that time I never trusted any official or any person who work for the government in Iraq and similar countries around it.

I graduated the top of  my class with 98.7% , my mark was the highest in the Health science at that time. I attended the physics program at night, later the government closed the program and didn’t allow any middle class or those who work in the government hospitals or school to obtain any higher degrees, because they afraid they lose us from the hospitals. If any body complaint, they were straight to prison.

I was lucky to select the radiography program, because that lead me to my radiology diploma in Canada after I left that evil country, and then led me to get my diploma in ultrasound in Canada. After thatI continued to get my BSc in Diagnostic Imaging and MSc in Medical Ultrasound from Australia,and my PhD in Public Health from the USA.

ha ha ha , We gave them the wrong information…….

I was lucky to immigrate to Canada and start all over from zero. Till today, I am still a student while working full time. I study and write my exams with out fear, free of corruptions, free of control, free of gypsies attitude with all my due respect to the European Gypsies. 

Don’t be a sheep and follow the crowd,  do not trust your shepherd. Question the authority, ask the question with out fear, discuss and find a solution to the problem, dont be silent and hope the problem will go away . Confront your aggressor and blow the whistle when you see corruption and injustice.

It make me so sad to feel that we are been cheated every day with out even know it . I know, those puppeteers thinks that they can go with out punishment , but look now what they are facing , wars , famine , destruction , sectarian violence, and God rath , and the worse is the disrespect of all nations . They lost their dignity, self respect, morality and in the end they go and pray to God !

Thank you for reading.

Steve Ramsey ( Saad Ramzi Ismail ), PhD.