While all the Arab armies — yes, all of them — were marching toward Palestine to throw the Jews into the sea, I was fighting my own battle with Surah Ar-Rahman, hoping it would finally enter my mind and give me a chance to pass the primary school certificate exam.
It was June 1967, and I was about to take the exam for the first time, even though I had already repeated the year. Most of today’s generation doesn’t know that back then, it wasn’t enough to simply complete the final year of primary school to sit for the exam. It wasn’t “come and take it.” You had to be deemed capable. I was among those who weren’t, and I repeated the year without even taking the exam. It was probably a precaution against cheaters who might pass through copying or trickery.
Anyway, in 1967, my exam preparation coincided with the Arab armies’ preparation to “throw the Jews into the sea.” And since I never left the radio — switching between Algerian broadcasts, Cairo Radio, and “This is London” — I failed, just as the Arab armies failed. As a result, I repeated the final year a third time. In short, I suffered a lot for that certificate. My family, thinking heaven had opened its doors, slaughtered a sheep and gave charity. They didn’t know that this damn certificate was the source of my misery: without it, I would have gone to France, bought a house, a car, and sorted out the kids’ papers.
If my misfortune came from obtaining that certificate, the misfortune of many municipal presidents comes from not obtaining it. This forced them to climb up and down the stairs of the courts. The same applies to our president. I mean regarding the court visits — but whether he actually has the certificate or not, God only knows. How could I know, when even the court itself, with all its strictness, couldn’t figure it out?
While waiting for the court’s decision, don’t you find it strange? One group says he has it, another says he absolutely doesn’t, and no one knows the truth. President Merzouki, with all the resources the presidency offered him, the authorities who claim to know everything about us, the intelligence services, the DST, the court… none of them have been able to determine whether he really studied in middle school or not. Incredible.
Away from the certificate topic, I note that Jouber chaired the first session of the new council on Thursday morning. There was one absence from the majority: the second deputy, Abdelilah Wahab. To me, that’s a sign he’s not on good terms with the majority. There was also one presence from the opposition: Meddah. To me, that’s a sign he’s not on good terms with the opposition either.
Amar Jelloul – 2012
