Chronicle Editor
Stephen Mpofu, Perspective
SCANDALOUS, treacherous, abominable, satanic et cetera, et cetera.
Unfortunately, however, the adjectives above in this discourse still remain far cries from adequately describing the characters and mindsets of the authors and beneficiaries of the scandals involving the nullification of last year Ordinary and Advanced level Zimsec examination results of 5 156 candidates who had prior sight of examination papers to the extent they merely copied during the exams the answers prepared in advance after the question papers were leaked to them courtesy of the love and wishes — in both cases dubious of fraudulent — of the so far nameless, behind- the-scenes invisible helping hands.
The exam papers leakages could not be more tragically ironic, happening at a time when for decades Zimbabwe’s educational system was credited not with functional literacy — reading and writing — but with producing students of among the highest literacy ratings on the African continent.
Now, after the exam papers leakage scandal, a dark cloud must be hovering over our education system perhaps even to the extent that students who perform genuinely well in their final exams through hard work might be lumped as fakes along with those disgraced with the cancellation of exam results after prior leakage of the exam papers by exactly those not yet known for facilitating the abominable act but who must without fail be exposed and harshly dealt with the laws of this country which know no partiality.
Thus, Zimsec, or higher Government authorities, must leave no stone unturned to discover exactly who facilitated the exam paper leakages and/or whether money oiled the scandal so that culprits, if employed by the state are blacklisted and thrown behind bars if found guilty by our law courts and in that way serve as a warning to potential law breakers to take heed of the consequences of breaking the law.
On their part, the candidates whose exam results were cancelled must not get away smiling into their hands, but deserve, in this writer’s humble opinion to be blacklisted from participating in external exams in this country with, if possible, a list of their names being supplied to external correspondents colleges for their blacklist to be effective world-wide as a warning to potential offenders that the world is too small for the law of any country to spot criminals and put in the shade criminals who believe they can get away with murder at home, literally, or in foreign lands.
In short, Zimbabwean students and those supervising them should have no shadow of doubt that leakages of exam papers is treacherous and therefor hazardous for those venturing into the offence with their mind’s eyes shut.
Similarly, individuals who photocopy textbooks or other literature for students behind the backs of publishers or authors of the literature should be read the riot act by the police or higher government authorities for violating copyright laws and therefore the offenders deprive the publishers of the recovery of the cost of putting out the books in addition to depriving authors who burn midnight oil writing the books not only for their financial benefit but for the enlightenment of students and the public in general on various aspects of life.
Online Reporter