Lebanon Scraps Middle School Exams Despite Education Ministry's Readiness

In a surprising turn of events, over 62,300 students set to take the official "Brevet" examinations, along with 1,500 independent candidates, found themselves facing the abrupt cancellation of the tests. The cabinet decided to nullify the middle school certificate examinations, despite the Minister of Education's insistence on proceeding with them until the last moment.

The drama unfolded as if orchestrated by a maestro. No sooner had the Minister of Education showcased the ministry's preparedness for the exams than the Minister of the Interior, Bassam Mawlawi, intervened. Citing financial and security constraints, Mawlawi declared the government's inability to allocate security forces to supervise these examinations.
The Minister of Culture, Mohammad Mortada, chimed in, asserting that these exams were not critical. His sentiment was further echoed by the Minister of Public Works, Ali Hamieh, who affirmed their lack of necessity.

The majority of the attending ministers, playing almost a chorus-like role in this unfolding drama, deemed the high success rates of this certificate sufficient grounds for its abolition.
The decisive verdict came from the caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, who stood firm on cancelling the middle school certificate exam at the cabinet's behest, notwithstanding the reservations of the Minister of Education.

This raises pressing questions. If the government was aware of its inability to facilitate the exams, why did it drain the resources of the education staff, from administrators to teachers, and more crucially, why did it leave the students in a state of uncertainty? The independent candidates now face an unknown future, possibly left to sit private exams, if the Ministry of Education organizes them.

For the remaining students, the likely course of action is to issue certificates instead of utilizing the school results.