Daughter beats dad to family crown

LAHORE: Ramla Ejaz, the top marks getter in this year’s BISE Secondary School Certificate exams, got the satisfaction of besting not just hundreds of thousands of students all over Lahore, but also someone much closer to home.

“In 1971 I got third position in BISE Lahore, so I am very happy that she has broken the family record,” said Ramla’s father Dr Hafiz Ejaz, who practices at Jinnah Hospital. He lived with his family in the USA between 1995 and 2008 and Ramla got her early schooling there.

Ramla, who is the youngest of five sisters and a brother, told The Express Tribune that she had studied independently for two months and then joined a private academy for practice tests in preparation for the exams. She said that commitment and ambition were the main reasons for her success.

Dr Ejaz said he hoped she would follow him and her brother, who is currently at medical school in the US, in choosing a career in medicine, but Ramla said she had not yet decided whether to apply for a pre-engineering or pre-medical programme.

Zabreen Tahir, who secured second position in BISE Lahore, said she wanted to become an engineer. She said corruption by politicians was the biggest issue of the country and the whole nation should work with honesty.

Muhammad Attiqur Rehman, who came third overall in BISE Lahore, told The Express Tribune that he got his education at a private school and his teachers regularly offered students an extra three to four hours of tuition after school. He said he loved cricket and played it for one or two hours every day. He said his father was a labourer in Kasur and he wanted to become a doctor.

Aqsa Rafaqat, who secured third position in Humanities, said she wanted to become a lawyer after completing her studies. She appreciated her teachers’ efforts in helping her prepare for the exams.

Momina Rauf, who finished third in the Science section among girls, said that she wanted to be an engineer. She said Pakistan was going through a very serious power shortage and the energy sector needed development.

Arslan Ali, who secured third position in the Science group among boys, said he planned to become a doctor.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 5^th, 2010.