The Regional Movement

I burst into laughter today as I was reading the ministerial note recently launched about the 'regional movement' of the teaching staff. The word ' transparency' is what made some of my wrinkles form in scorn and contempt. Transparency is not a favor to be done to or to be bestowed on the teaching staff so that it can be talked over in these notes. Rather, it needs to be applied, not talked over. We already know that some ghosts always break the rule of transparency. The ministerial note touches on transparency as though it were something commonplace. That is simply why they focus on it in these notes. Instead of penalizing those who have broken its rule many years now, those in charge state that it must not be broken at all costs. They preach, but they don't practise. Frankly, this reminds me of a grammar teacher telling his students that he doesn't make grammar mistakes, a writing teacher telling his pupils that he doesn't write badly or a judge telling the accused that he doesn't do his convicts an injustice .These teachers and the judge aren't supposed to tell their students they don't have these defects simply because they are not expected to have them. So, why should they tell their students and convicts these things? The same thing applies to transparency on the part of those in charge of the 'regional movement

I Wish I could Take some University Teachers to Court

I wish I could take several university teachers that I know to court. They have been behind both the despair of many hard-working students and the undeserved success of many poor students, particularly female ones. I am not talking out of the spread rumour. As an ex-university student and a friend of several university teachers, I am once more stressing that they need to get their just deserts for their injustices. Among the latter is the fact that many of them do not assess effectively, do not correct exam papers, and do not treat girls and boys impartially. Also, some others correct faces, not levels, stress on attendance, not participation, and appreciate students who are good at flattery, not those who challenge. You may say that not all university teachers behave so. But what does this have to do with what I am hinting at? Can't you see that only two unfair university teachers would suffice to lead a student astray? Can't you see that only one teacher can negatively impact on the whole university as a rotten fish does to the fresh ones in a basket? What I can't understand is why some university teachers fall prey to a crying female student. What I can't understand either is why some university teachers are more lenient with those they know or sit with at cafes than with those they see only in class. I will not forget the university teacher who once gave a good mark to a girl sitting in front of me. The girl was a nuisance to many nearby testees, including me that day. She submitted her exam paper blank. Still, she ranked first at the subject we were tested on. The teacher in question has been a deadly virus to many strong spirits. We need to keep our university immune from such sorts of teachers. Rising up against them would be the last straw.

Dowry

Dowry as a step towards marriage is the issue some friends raised to me recently. In all sincerity, I have always held a certain attitude towards how much a dowry costs. That is, I simply consider it as a formality that is not worth all the fuss we make of it. Some rich suitors give it so much importance in that they are ready to give five millions. Others, especially those belonging to the middle class, give the bride around six thousand dirhams. Poor suitors, like me, can afford to give the bride one thousand dirhams or so. Whatever the amount of money one gives, it is married life that will matter in the long run. In fact, those suitors that I usually pity are the ones who give a dowry they can not afford. And no sooner does the wedding come to an end than this sort of men begin to make both ends meet. That is why frankness is always appreciated from the very start of any married life. If misery then crops up, at least, there will be no one to blame. The little dowry has made it clearer that what will follow must either be little or much. The ample dowry makes it clearer from the start that what will follow must always be much. Additionally, there is another problem which is that the bride's family usually appreciate the suitor who can afford the largest dowry. For instance, a poor suitor, like me, can't afford to marry the daughter of a businessman for the reason that the dowry I am able to give her is equal to the amount of money she spends when she goes shopping at the weekend. As for a girl who has despaired of marriage because of old age, a dowry no longer matters to her as much as getting married does. That is why I would appreciate it if a girl of beauty and wealth would not deem a dowry as necessary. If you find this sort of girl, it must mean that not giving much significance to the dowry can only be ascribed to its being a principle for her. In earnest, the poor should give a little dowry, and the rich should give a large dowry. Hearing of a poor man giving a large dowry is queer to me in that there will come a time when he will think back to the amount it costs and regret being showy.

The Kissed Frog

One of my friends once asked for a very beautiful girl's hand in my village, but she refused his proposal. When he related the event to me, I told him that he instantly reminded me of the cartoon of a fairy tale I used to watch on TV as a child. I am sure you all know the tale of the frog that turned into a prince the moment it was kissed by a princess. It is this fairy tale I am talking about. I am comparing this friend's story with the tale of the frog, for they have a lot in common. I very well know this friend; he has almost all good qualities, including wealth. The only defect he has got is that he is remarkably short. The frog was in dire need of being kissed so as to turn into a handsome prince, and my friend was in dire need of getting married to the beautiful girl so as to show her that he was the most well-mannered and kindest man she could ever encounter in her life. Happily, the frog was kissed. Sadly, my friend was turned down.

Newly-appointed Teachers

At the start of each school year, a number of new teachers are appointed to different places of work in different regions all over Morocco. Normally, the procedure of appointment abides by several criteria. One of the latter is that compared to male teachers, female teachers must stand more chances of being appointed to their preferred areas of work. Frankly, I support this criterion provided that it is respected to the letter and without exceptions. What I can not understand, however, is that some female teachers are appointed to remote places of work. And when we delve into the reasons behind this sort of appointment, we are told that the female teachers appointed to remote areas did not get as good a grade as the ones appointed in the vicinity of their homes. On the other hand, the male teachers who rank first and who are appointed in remote areas complain about the good appointments of the female teachers with an average grade. The male teachers who outshine female ones are given more remote areas, while the latter are given near places. What I am aiming at is that as long as female teachers are prioritized irrespective of the grade criterion, they must all be appointed to good working places. How would we account for the fact that some male teachers with a high grade and female teachers with an average grade being appointed to the same remote area? If there were a difference of sex as some say, why are female teachers treated equally with male teachers in this case? Why are female teachers treated unequally among themselves, especially that the excuse we give to male teachers is that female ones must not be appointed too far? If they must not be appointed far, how can we explain the fact that many of them work in very far places? If the grade they get is the reason you are going to provide me with, how do you explain that female teachers must not be appointed too far from their homes irrespective of the grade they get? By the way, I still vividly remember the flimsy and silly excuse a female teacher gave me about her resorting to nepotism to change her original place of work, Zagora to Inzegan. She said to me that unlike we male teachers, she must be appointed so near by reason of the hard conditions girls alone suffer from. In response, I said that I wished all girls had been treated in the same manner. " What about all other female teachers in remote areas? Aren't they girls too?" I asked myself. Now, I feel as though I were in front of a labyrinth, not knowing where to point my finger.

The Last Visit

I paid the land an inexorable visit
To teach a pupil and to learn a lesson;
It isn't a thing to regret, is it?
I paid the dunes the last visit to lessen
My hardships and to make my new life exquisite;
Even a cheetah hastens
Its pace to pounce on the prey so as to stay fit;
Why should I not leave the land since
I, like a cheetah, need to run fast to remain alive

A Mere Traveler

Yesterday, as I was about to lay my head on the pillow, a queer feeling permeated every vein of mine. I immediately racked my brain to find out what the feeling said. A few moments later, I inferred that it was only telling me that I had been a mere traveler up to now. I was born in Tangiers towards the end of November of 1986. I lived in this city for six years until I turned six. In 1993, I moved to Azerouadou, a southern village, the place where my father was born. It was there where I entered my primary school. I was seven then. As soon as my primary schooling was over, I moved to Tafraout where I began my schooling as both a middle school student and a high school student. When I got my Baccalaureate in 2006, I moved to El Jadida, a city in the middle. It was there where I entered university. I spent two years studying there and in 2008, I moved to the south again, for I had to receive my training in Agadir teacher training center. I graduated there in 2009, and three months later, I was appointed to a remote place next to the sand dunes. It was Zagora city. After spending two years in Zagora as a teacher, I moved to Sidi Ifni city, a new place of work for me though it is nearer to my hometown compared to Zagora. I may account for the queer feeling that I have been a mere traveler by comparing and contrasting Tangiers, Zagora, El Jadida, Sidi Ifni, Agadir, Tafraout, Azerouado. No way to compare, but only to contrast! I am sure many of you have gone through the same experience.