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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 June 2000 Issue No. 485 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 June 2000 Issue No. 485
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons School house blues
IT'S EXAM time at the nation's elementary, preparatory and secondary schools, which means the chaos has begun. Still reeling from a high-profile secondary school cheating scandal a few years back, Alexandria's preparatory schools are in the midst of another.There are worries that the whole testing system has been compromised by widespread corruption. Investigators have found evidence indicating that an employee at the Ministry of Education's "secret" print-shop has been selling exam papers for LE350 and one teacher has been caught using the information in his private tutoring business. As a result of this security breach, exams have had to be re-written and the news has unleashed a flurry of allegations.
In Port Said, 10 school administrators and workers were investigated and duly punished after a student at the Asfouri Private Secondary School reported being intimidated after complaining about cheating.
Currently, the all-important secondary school certificate exams, the infamous Thanawiya Amma, are underway. Some 716,000 students must brave a grueling two week exam schedule. 126,000 invigilators are observing the exams to make sure things go smoothly. Yet perhaps teachers should be watching themselves. During the preparation period for the final exams, many teachers have been devoting much of their time to private tutoring. This week seven unlucky teachers found themselves under the close scrutiny of the tax man. In total, they were forced to pay taxes on the over four million pounds of undeclared income.
Hands in the cookie jar
THIS WEEK, Ragab Hilal Hemeida, the sole parliamentary representative of the opposition Liberal party, and Fayez El-Tinikhi, a National Democratic Party (NDP) deputy from the Beheira governorate, have both been stripped of their parliamentary immunity.The Legislative and Constitutional Committee of the People's Assembly took the action as a result of an investigation into their financial affairs. In Hemeida's case, worthless cheques were issued to Abdel-Fattah Kamel Diab, the owner of an agricultural company, and a former assembly member, for LE95,000. As for El-Tinikhi, he had issued a worthless cheque for a whopping LE900,000 to Faisal Islamic Bank.
The committee also decided that Sami Ibrahim Ahmed, an NDP deputy from Daqahliya, should be required to testify in court. Ahmed and other board members of a housing cooperative society, are accused of failing to submit a balance sheet report to the General Authority of Housing Cooperatives, an official watchdog institution.
Goal-post diplomacy
SPORTS has often been used to build friendly ties between nations. Nixon changed the course of the Cold War with ping-pong diplomacy. In the Middle East, a common passion for football may draw Cairo and Tehran closer together.Currently, the Egyptian national team is in Iran for a friendly tournament. This is its first visit to Iran and local newspapers report that the players are being very well received. The game is in preparation for the first round of World Cup qualifying matches.
Alexander and the dove
AN EQUESTRIAN statue of Alexander the Great now graces one of the grand squares of the city that bears his name. The statue was placed on a pedestal in the centre of Abdel-Moneim Riyad Square this week, just in time for the throngs who flock to the port city for summer vacation.Soon, Alexandria will be graced with another landmark. A new square, named after favourite son, Nobel Prize winner Ahmed Zuweil, is to be inaugurated next month. The focal point of the square will be a five metre statue of a woman holding a dove symbolising peace.
Asleep at the switch
HADAD EL-MOGHI'S family was fast asleep at home in the Cairo district of Al-Marg when a sudden crash and violent shudder broke their slumber.Thinking it was an earthquake, several family-members desperately flung themselves from a second floor balcony in order to escape the building. Fortunately, none of the family members were hurt in the chaos. Once outside, they could see that their conclusions had been premature.
The ground tremors had been the result of a large tractor-trailer slamming though the bottom floor. Carrying a large shipment of cement, the truck caused extensive damage. Apparently the driver of the truck had fallen asleep at the wheel. He suffered only minor head injuries.
Obituary
Fathi Hussein (1919-2000)Al-Ahram senior photographer
FATHI HUSSEIN, long-time head of the photography department at Al-Ahram Alexandria office, passed away this week. He was 81.
In nearly 60 years of dedicated service, Hussein's lens captured a wide range of events. His insightful eye covered the Yemeni civil war, the Egyptian-Israeli War of Attrition, and surveyed the Nubian villages soon to be inundated by the waters of the High Dam. Yet, he always returned to his favourite subject, Alexandria. Hussein has left countless images of the city he loved.
Apart from his superlative skill with the camera, Hussein also left his mark while serving in several major administrative posts, including head of the Union of African Photojournalists.
Compiled by Tarek Atia
