The Moroccan Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Cops Flack For Dumbing Down

Larbi Arbaoui, writing for the influential Morocco World News. has given a well deserved serve to the Moroccan Minister of Education for what a majority of Moroccans are calling a very backward step. The new government is under fire from around the country for a series of political blunders from so called senior ministers. Many have called for the new prime minister to control the behaviour of his ministers but for some reason he remains silent and seemingly happy for his unskilled ministers to self-destruct.

Taroudant, Morocco, April , 2012.

Lahcen Daoudi -
a minister out of touch?

At a time when Moroccans were waiting to see the newly elected government make serious decisions that would have a direct positive impact on their daily lives, they were taken aback by a series of decrees from various ministers that have nothing to do with the needs of the underprivileged, illiterate, unemployed and homeless Moroccans. The recent decree that prompted dismay and disgruntlement among public sector employees was a circular sent by Mr. Lahcen Daoudi,  to the heads of universities, on April 10, 2012 which prohibits all public sector employees from completing their higher studies in Master Programs.

The present government in its recent resolution in the words of Mr. Lahcen Daoudi continues the series of human rights violations by depriving the public sector employees of the right to enroll in Masters programs. What is the purpose of preventing employees of this right, one that is guaranteed by the country’s constitution and international conventions, other than just to promote a culture of apathy and encourage moral decadence? On what basis can they prevent a person from obtaining an advanced degree? Is there a nation on earth that bans its own citizens from the resources of education for advancing their lives and contributing to the development of their country?

The main expected goal of the newly elected government, in addition to encouraging education was to fight corruption, cheating and to reform the decaying curriculum found in its universities. With the lack of clear regulations, university students are at the mercy of the moody character of some of their teachers. Most universities are in chaos and barely manage students’ affairs because of the insufficiency of assistants and administrators. University teachers are suffering from crowded classes, lack of speakers that project through entire lecture halls and disciplinary problems. These, I believe, are the main issues that have to be at the heart of the concerns of the government. But somehow we got this other decree, instead.

I should remind those in charge of such blameworthy decrees that Morocco is, like never before, in desperate need of people with high potential and distinguished skills. Any country that respects itself puts education–primarily the training of educators–at the top of its priorities. Since teachers are responsible for teaching and educating students who will, later on, be able to function positively and contribute to society, they are the ones most in dire need of Master programs and advanced training to provide them with enlightened knowledge, innovative techniques and advanced strategies to cope with the challenging tasks they are up against.

There is no glittering future for any country who despises its teachers and educators. Any nation that doesn’t consider education its main duty is implicitly paving the way for moral decadence, indirectly announcing its own social decline and at the end will find itself struggling in the heart of darkness.
I stood enthralled and delighted when I learned from one of my friends living in America that she enrolled last year in a university programme at the age of fifty. At the same time I felt sorry for our government to see that it is instead inventing new tricks to block a category of people from obtaining similar levels of knowledge, especially that the explicit platform of the ruling party advocates the pursuit of knowledge from cradle to grave.


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