No student was disallowed from sitting the national examinations this year, even for those who failed to pay the exam fees and those who were expelled from their schools, says the Education Chief, A'eau Christopher Hazelman. 

A'eau said every student has the right to take the national examinations and it's the duty of the Ministry of Education to ensure that there are policies and strategies in place to address any issue that might prohibit students from sitting the national exams. 

Asked whether it would be unfair for students who paid their exam fees on time, A'eau replied by saying, "There is that sense of fairness, but at the end of the day, they have the right to take these national exams.

"And for us, the ministry, this is our service and we have a duty and obligation to make sure that every student gets the opportunity to sit the exams.

"We understand that people might say that it's unfair for the parents and students who paid their exam fees, but we can't deny the students the opportunity to sit these national exams."

It was then put to A'eau whether the Ministry would urge parents and guardians to utilise the financial assistance provided by the District Councils across the country that have allocated funds from the $1 million tala District Development project to pay for students tuition fees. 

A'eau responded by saying the ministry is not in a position to interfere with the plans and decisions made by the District Councils. 

However, he commended the initiative saying it's something the ministry would fully support. 

"We don't want to force or interfere with the plans and decisions by the respective district councils. But I understand that some have prioritised education and are allocating funds to pay for students' tuition fees which is a great initiative. 

"I think that's a great way of helping and assisting the families and children who are the future of Samoa. That will ensure that no student will be able to go to school and continue their education especially in situations where families can not afford school fees for their children, particularly for the ones at the University level. 

"And we would love for that to continue and encourage parents to use the opportunity wisely. 

"As I said, there were students who did not register and did not pay the exam fees but turned up on the dates we had the exams and they weren't denied the opportunity to sit the exams."

As for those who were expelled from their schools, A'eau said arrangements were made so they could come in and sit their examinations at the Ministry's Headquarters. 

"These are students who had already registered to sit the exams and had paid the exam fees. We made sure they got the chance to sit their national examinations because under our guidelines, they are entitled to it and they have the right to take these exams because it determines the next step for their academic journeys."

A'eau said the majority of those who sat the national examinations this year had paid the exam fees.