"Every year in the Democratic Republic of Congo, almost 500000 young people sit the equivalent of the baccalaureate." "The stakes are very high for them, their future depends on it." "Athénée Royal" " Kisangani Democratic Republic of Congo" "Royal High School?" "Royal Junk Yard, more like!" "To think we still have another 7,000 francs to pay..." "No, 21,000." "NATIONAL DIPLOMA" "Since my parents passed away, it's hard for me to pay for my studies." "Especially now, at the end of the year, when we're thrown out because of teachers' fees." "I live at my aunt's." "She helps me to get by." "But I have to find a way to pay the teachers' fees." "I'm at the market morning and evening." "I have to unpack and pack goods, then take them to the warehouse." "At this rate, I'm worried I won't get my National Diploma and remain a market porter all my life." "That's why I'm here to see you." "I want you to help me to succeed." "Help me get my National Diploma so my life won't be wasted." "I really need your help." "Don't worry, we're going to help you." "Get the plants that fight bad luck." "Crush them and mix them with water." "Come back regularly until the day before the exam." "I have other plants for you to put on your face." "Today is just a beginning." "Fetch that chair." "He has to climb onto this chair and purify his body with this water." "And, while he purifies himself, he must talk to the ancestors about his problem." "Give him the chair and follow him to the shower." "You don't have to undress during the ceremony." "All my projects... must succeed." "The National Diploma..." "I mustn't fail..." "Say it all one more time." "All my projects... must meet with success, with success, with success..." "Insist on the Diploma." "I want to get my National Diploma." ""People of Congo..." "Reject Evil, think of Good, work hard and all will go well."" ""The leader is a superior among equals." "A democratic leader makes work easier."" " Are you on time?" " No, I..." "If you say no, you think you aren't late!" "I apologize." " Has this one been done?" " Yes." " This one too?" " Yes, we started here." "Excuse us..." "Take that vest off." "Thank you." "Sit down." "Yesterday, we said we'd exclude those who haven't paid the fee." "Here we are?" "The bursar is here." "He has to throw out those who haven't paid." "We've waited a long time but there's no money." "We have to pay the teachers." "They're hungry." "They have to live too." " Yes, OK..." " All right, thank you." "Come up when I call your names." "Alice, come up here." "Djafari, come up here." "Lohoka, come up here." "Gandi, come up here." "Gently!" "No need to jostle me." "Explain to him we're in the final year." " The principal said he'd accept us." " Not to me, he didn't." " At the assembly..." " He has to talk to the teachers first." "At the assembly, he told us to wait." "He told us we could study until Saturday." "Go downstairs!" "If you don't leave, the teachers won't come in." "Then what do we do?" "He told us that himself!" "Let's see the principal." "It'll be a lot simpler." "Let's see him." "Sir, we're in the final year." "The principal..." "You talk too much." "You're winding everyone up." "We want democracy!" "Democracy isn't disorder." "The principal told us we could study until Saturday..." " He said so at the assembly..." " Go downstairs!" "What's your problem?" "We haven't studied for weeks now because of the teachers' strikes." "The teachers have just started work again." "Let us stay one more week..." "When was the third instalment due to be paid?" "After the Easter holiday." "True or false?" "Did you respect that?" "If you'd paid at least 15,000 francs, we'd let you stay" "I told you clearly: pay on time!" "We'll pay, Papa, we'll pay." "Yes, that's what I'm saying." "The teacher threw you out." "Go home now and come back tomorrow" "But if you can't pay by Saturday, don't come back." "For now, just go home." " Yes, my girl." " Mum..." " She gave you the money?" " Yes." "How much?" " 20,000 francs." " No." "I'm not taking it." "Listen..." "We're the leaders of our class." "We have to launch our "maquis" plan fast." "That said, we quickly need to find a house to rent." "We need to react fast to be ready for the National Exam." "We'd already spotted a few unfinished houses that we could use as a "maquis"." "But since we had no money for rent, we had to forget it." "We have to hurry..." "We're running out of time!" "Can we find one in the musicians' district?" "There are a lot there." "A lot, yes, but we have to pay." "Here's what I think:" "as leaders, it's up to us to find a way of paying at least part of the rent." "We mustn't wait for the whole class to chip in if we want to move fast." "Let's say each student has to pay $25." "Before the 15th of next month." "I know students who are ready to pay..." "Let me finish, please!" "As I was saying, $25 to take part and we begin on June 15th." "We also accept small down payments as long as the sum is reached by the 15th." "That's what we'll tell everyone." "Move it, pal." "Gangway!" "Watch out." "We're here in this room for the mock National Exam." "No excuses today." "It was clearly stated that only students who have paid in full will be allowed to sit this exam." "When we throw you out, we'll take the papers." "Too bad." "If you haven't paid, you're disqualified from the exam." "Let's start checking." "If you haven't paid, give us your paper." "Or if you have the money, come and pay." "Let's start here." "Fandama." "You haven't paid!" "Take her exam paper." "Calm down, OK." "You got thrown out too?" "What do you think?" "Let's see the principal." "Forget it." "Let's see him." "He might listen this time." "Forget it, I said." "You know what he's going to say." "Let's see him." "You're looking for trouble for no reason..." "This time, all you'll get is a slap." "He won't slap anyone if there's a lot of us." "Go without us!" "If it works, too bad for you." "Guys, let's see the principal." "Come on, we'll apologize to him." "Let's wait." "He's busy." "You haven't paid either?" "Would I be here if I had?" "It's like we've played hooky all year without meaning to, huh?" "I don't tell my parents about these exclusions anymore." "I already know what they'll say." "I've stopped telling mine too." "I swear it's no use!" "They know we have to pay to attend school but always act as if they don't." "I asked them for the fees three times this week." "But they don't react." "Mr. Chairman, take the floor." "We've all gathered here because we only have two months left to get ready." "You know what's happening at school." "We haven't studied properly all year because of absent teachers." "The lessons have resumed now but we're excluded because of the fees." "Whatever happens, exclusion or not, we'll never be able to finish the year's programme." "There's no sense in complaining." "We have to find our own solution." "Because if we manage to get our diplomas, they won't be diplomas for the principal or head." "They'll be our diplomas." "Let's pool our energy to attain our goal." ""Misfortune leads to good fortune, ° they say." "And so we've decided that we need to quickly find a house where we can prepare for the National Exam in peace." "Here's how you can join..." "The full cost is $25 each." "Of the $25, each person has to pay $10 in advance." "It's the deposit on the house." "It's too much!" "You're exaggerating!" "One person at a time." "Our families don't have a lot of money..." "Don't forget that!" "I'm funding myself." "I can't afford $25." "Make it a bit less, please." "Let's make a list of the people who want to come and we'll know how many are interested." "Then we can set a reasonable amount for each one to pay." "A list won't be any use." "People make promises but then they don't pay." "We may as well carry on debating this issue." "No." "We can't keep talking indefinitely." "We need a final decision here." "It's an individual choice." "Those who don't agree can stay at home." "Those who want to follow us have to pay." "I have a big pirogue for you two." "Only 3,500 francs." "We'll take the public pirogue for 200." "I can take you for 2,000." " We'll take the public one." " With a camera?" "We have no money." "I'll take you across for 2,000." "No, I'll take the public pirogue." " With that crowd?" " Yes, for 200." "My friends and I have decided to find a house where we can prepare for the Exam." "There'll be a lot of us there." "Not so many at first but a lot more at the end." "There might be problems." "When you live with strangers for two months, a lot of things can happen." "That's why" "I want to be under your protection so nothing happens to me." "Give him the money." "You know how much it is?" "It hasn't changed." "Put it on the ground." "Follow me." "Got a hammer?" "He's a burglar!" "Don't try this at home." "Mind the electric wiring." "This can be a bedroom." "That's up to you." "But mind the wiring." "We just need a place to spread out our mattresses." "We won't touch the wiring." "We just want to sleep at night and study all day." "This is for the shower." "Question: calculate the inverse function." "Here we have the equation." "We need to find the inverse." "For the inverse of any equation, we just need to change these two values." "Because they are two different values." "We do what we call a permutation." "That gives us:" "X minus one equals Y minus one." "Congratulations." "I'd like a kiss." "You'll get one tomorrow" "We're going to pray now." "Girls, put your headscarves on." "Dearly beloved!" "We're here to study but we're nothing without God." "The devil won't let us succeed easily." "That's why we'll fight him and neutralize him with our prayers." "In the name of Jesus Christ, let us pray!" "Jesus, do something." "Do something..." "Lord, you give us intelligence..." "Give me a diploma..." "Help me to succeed..." "Can we come in?" "Here's our papa!" "This papa isn't mean." "The skilled director!" "Papa is good!" "A kind papa!" "No male-female equality?" " There isn't a mum..." " They're inside." " They're cooking?" " Yes." "They're here." "They'll join us soon." "Have a seat!" "So, tell us what you're doing here." "First off, we've come here... to study." "Our lesson plan is up there." "The timetable is there too." "Above it, the house rules." " Where's the timetable?" " On that piece of card." " With the rules above?" " Yes." "On listening to you, the first point is what struck us." "You're here to study." "That's a good answer." "Carry on like that." "Stick to your timetable..." "And get ready." "Every day, the National Exam gets a little closer." "I nearly forgot..." "Some students haven't finished paying the fees yet." "Why do you put spokes in our wheels like that?" "You've crippled us." "Your teachers do a bad job because of that." "We have lists for each class..." "Some students haven't paid anything at all." "Omeleke, for instance, Osisemo..." "To name just two." "It means you've studied for free!" " Can I say something?" " Yes." "We want to give our opinion." "Let's take a subject like Philosophy." "This year, we only studied three philosophers." "Three philosophers." "All the others, the second part of the course... we never studied them." "How can we revise?" "If the exam': on them, what do we do?" "Pedagogy. same thing." "The optional classes..." " Biology too" " Don't mention Biology." "History, English, French..." "We've had it in all those subjects." "In the whole year, only one teacher finished his course, the Didactics teacher." "All the others... a disaster!" "We're trying to get the textbooks from friends." "Honestly, we don't know how to explain to each other things that we don't understand!" "To address that key question," "I think that each time I came to your classes," "I kept telling you:" "when there's a problem, come to the office." "The way I run things," "I've always asked teachers to complete the programme." "After all, the programme is the basis for the exam." "But there are mercenaries." "They're teachers of course but mercenaries too." "A mercenary is someone with a personal goal." "He doesn't see the interest of what you do." " He sees his own interest." " His personal interest." "Calm down!" "The desire to succeed is yours." "70% of the effort needed to succeed comes from you." "And it's a good thing to have left your homes to come and live here." "Thank you." "I'd like to tell you, as the school authorities..." "Really..." "We've been sacrificed this year." "But do something for future classes." "Help them, please!" "We're going to have a reading from Proverbs 8, verse 14." ""Success belongs to me..." "Intelligence is mine..." "Strength is mine." Amen." "That's why I take an interest in youngsters sitting the National Exam." "When I read that verse for the first time," "I told myself," ""Yes, young people must understand that verse if they want to succeed."" "Many who haven't understood that verse waste their time looking here and there for intelligence." "Some spend their nights in cemeteries, other consult marabouts..." "And others still, with their parents, follow all kinds of paths to find success!" "Yet the only place to go in order to succeed is the church!" "I'm going to ask you to bring me your pens." "I'll pray for that." "You know, a pen is what allows you to put in uniting what you have in your mind." "God can give you intelligence but if you can't put it down on paper, you won't succeed." "That's why we want to work on these pens with powerful prayers before returning them to you." "When you go to sit the Exam with these pens, you'll be able to reproduce exactly what God will put in your minds." "Write your name on a piece of paper and slip it inside the pen." "That will avoid any confusion." "Those who are ready may come forward now." "Thank you for welcoming us here." "We tried to come sooner but we couldn't." "There's too much to do these days at the university." "As a former student," "I can tell you no one can pass the National Exam without cheating." "My friend and I were top of our class throughout high school." "I regularly had the top place." "But on the 1st day of the exam, out of 20 questions," "I only had one correct answer." "I couldn't believe it!" "Just think!" "The best student in the class..." "Only one correct answer..." "If I didn't cheat what would become of me?" "Even so, I'd been top of the class since primary school." "That's just to show you how complicated this exam is." "The people who set it know that." "So they allow the answers to leak out." "That's how my friend got 70 %." "I got 63 %." "Others, more than 70 %... if you haven't found anyone to help you on that level, we're ready to do it." "It's like a legacy." "This year, we're going to help you." "Next year, it'll be your turn to help your brothers." "It was the same in our day..." "Our elders helped us to succeed." "Yesterday it was us, today it's you, tomorrow, it will be your brothers..." "And so on." "If you agree, we're ready to help you." "Hi, is Modé here?" "No, he's gone out." "I'm selling this phone." "How much do you want?" "How much are you offering?" " You're the seller..." " Give me $8." "That's a lot." " Phone for sale, boss." " Not interested." " How much is it?" " $10." "That's a lot." "Hello, Auntie." "I've made 5,000 francs." "I've sold my phone." "I need another 6,000 francs to pay the exam fees." "I haven't sold anything yet." "You haven't sold anything?" "How will I pay my fees?" "Look at all this..." "There aren't many customers today." ""The righteous will live by faith."" "Living God," "I entrust these young people to Your hands." "They're not here for me." "They have come to You who hands out diplomas..." "My God!" "Lord!" "I've done my share..." "It's Your turn to act now..." "I'm talking to the demon that has taken over this brain." "Out with you!" "Out!" "Hold her!" "Receive the fire!" "Leave her mind!" "Out!" "Who are you?" "Who is inside this body?" "Many of us!" " Who are you?" " Men." "What are you doing in this body?" "We don't want her to get her diploma." "Where are you from?" "From her family..." "Listen!" "She has found refuge with the One who created intelligence." "You can no longer influence her." "I render void and ineffective all the decisions that you have made about her life." "I destroy all your plans..." "All your schemes..." "All your schemes..." "That's it." "Everyone is ready." "They're waiting for you." "Quiet, please!" "Everyone has a piece of paper?" "Get out your pens." "I'm about to do something very risky." "I'm doing it for the good of everyone here." "So be quiet or I'll stop." "No!" "We'll be quiet..." "Go on!" "Series number 1..." "Question 2..." "First president." "Series 1, question 2." "Reference: first president." "Four..." "One..." "Two..." "Series 2..." "Reference: second president." "Six..." "Five..." "To know the number of your series, the first thing to do on getting the questionnaire, is to find these clues..." "If you find "1st president", you have series 1." ""2nd president" is series 2." ""3rd president"..." "And so on." "My brothers, we're here for a reason." "You want to succeed, he wants to, him over there too..." "Everyone here wants to make it to help his or her family." "So, please!" "Let's not look for problems among us!" "Don't be in a hurry to use these bits of paper." "You have to be very careful in the exam room." "If a supervisor catches you with your piece of paper, all you can do is swallow it." "No one will open up your stomach to go looking for it inside." "If he won't back down, get angry, threaten him..." "Do all you can to scare him..." "But if you get caught with the evidence... that will be your problem." "I'll deny everything." "So be careful." "Let's not put our lives in danger." "Lycée Mapendano National Diploma Exam Centre 1" "The number of exam exercise books is limited." "We have 351 candidates and exactly 351 exam books." "If you damage yours, that's your problem." "You've all learned how to fill out the electronic grid." "If you damage your book, that's your problem." "Today's exam only lasts two hours." "You've seen that on the schedule that I put up yesterday." "Therefore, no toilet breaks today." "Relieve yourselves before going in." "Once you're in, you stay!" "Inside, do not speak to the supervisor!" "Inside, give the supervisor eight sheets of paper." "We weren't told about that!" "National Diploma Exam Centre 2" "My respects, Excellency!" " How are you?" " Hello, Excellency." "Hello." "How are you?" "Very nice strongboxes." "Are they like this every year?" "We've improved them... to improve exam security." " Enter the code now." " You have it?" "Good security!" "This is..." "That's the exam for the short cycle." "So this is what I give to Madam Minister." "Thank you." "His Excellency the Provincial Governor authorizes the head of this centre to lead the students to their exam rooms." "The exam went badly for me..." "They'll refund my money." "Don't say that..." "It's all your fault..." "You took our phones and forced us to work with no one but your crook of a friend." "You killed us!" "You're going to give us our money back!" "Our telephones too..." "I was so confident this morning." "Luckily for me, I had a back-up plan, otherwise..." "I had wagered everything on their shitty bit of paper..." "They'll refund my money." "That gang of crooks is going to hear from us!" " It's getting off to a bad start!" " I swear..." "Take your pieces of paper..." "And give us back our money." "Here's the real leak." "Unfortunately, I got it too late..." "You were already in the exam." "We want to hear your crooked friend, not you." "I'll call him..." "He won't have all the money." " Shako, did we give him his money?" " No." "You're playing with people's lives." "The whole city had the real leak, except us." " We've been swindled!" " Let me explain..." "They stepped up the security measures..." "Each code series was inverted." "Everything was messed up because of that." "We didn't realize until it was too late." "I tried to get a message to you but it was impossible." "But you told us your source was the most reliable one." "So what happened?" "We want our money, not explanations." "Give us back our money!" "This is theft!" "My brothers..." "Listen to me, please." "We all know... that today's exam... didn't go well." "You've done a lot of talking today." "It was unbearable!" "Yes, it happened." "But it wasn't my fault." "It didn't just happen to us." "Everywhere..." "You didn't try asking other students." "You preferred to yell at me." "If you had, you'd have understood what happened." "Anyone who wants... to get their $5 back can come to see me after the exam tomorrow" "No, now." " I said tomorrow after the exam." " No, today." "The most important thing now," "is... is... the next exam." "It's an optional course with 30 questions." "We need to find 30 correct answers to make up for today's disaster." "Tonight, there have been many leaks like yesterday." "But, yesterday, our haste caused us to make mistakes." "This time, trust me." "There won't be any problem." "Let's start with the leaks that are doing the rounds before I give you mine." "We've already copied all the other leaks." " You have them?" " Yes." "Give us your version now." "It's already late." "S3..." "Q2..." "Touch..." "Like on the board." "Series 3, question 2..." "Touch..." "Five..." "Five..." "Two..." "Four..." "Three..." "Two..." "It worked!" "We have to celebrate!" "You're a real leader!" "You did a great job, Chairman!" "You're the best." "Two months later" "I Passed!" "I'm happy!" "I have my diploma!" "God helped me..." "It's over..." "I got 80%!" " Well, Joel?" " I haven't had my results yet." " I'm confident..." " Keep me posted." "Check your phone." "The results have been released." "Here we go..." "I've sent a text message." "The answer..." "What percentage did he get?" "57... 57... 57 %!" "What percentage?" "What did I get?" "59 "A." "Help me to check mine." "You've got it!" "Give me the last figure of your code." "I've sent a text message." "Nothing." "Chin up..." "There's no news yet." "Chin up, Joël..." "Honoré, your turn." "The answer..." "All the people working here have had to give up their studies." "But you keep going." "This failure isn't the end of your life." "You're young, you have to resist..." "If you give up, you'll be stuck here forever." "Pull yourself together..." "Next year, you'll sit the exam again." "Take heart, my friend..." "That's life." "Take up your studies again." "To my parents" "NATIONAL DIPLOMA"