A student at SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli has finally been permitted to take exams after the Regional Education Office paid the school committee fee for the next 6 months, amounting to Rp 40,000 per month.
Previously, the student was barred from taking exams by the school because of outstanding school committee payments since July 2025, even though these fees are supposed to be voluntary.
The student had taken exams on the first day, but their exam card was revoked and they were subsequently prohibited from continuing due to the unpaid fees. The student has now taken a make-up exam.
The Head of the Regional Education Office confirmed they became aware of the incident on Tuesday, October 7, 2025.
“We immediately conducted monitoring at SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli, met directly with the student, and thankfully they have taken the make-up exam and have returned to school,” the official stated.
Regarding sanctions for the homeroom teacher who prevented the student from taking exams solely because of the unpaid voluntary contribution, the official confirmed that sanctions will be imposed.
“However, what specific sanctions will be given to the homeroom teacher, we are still studying the matter,” they emphasized.
This action is being taken to prevent similar incidents in the future, ensuring no students face exam obstacles due to committee fees.
Concerning the unpaid student committee fees, the Regional Education Office has taken steps to settle them for the next 6 months.
“The Head of the High School Division has helped pay the fees for the next 6 months,” they explained.
Regarding the issue of mandatory committee fees disguised as voluntary contributions, the official stated they only became aware of it during monitoring, since assuming office in July 2025.
Monitoring revealed that SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli collects varying committee fees from students, with some paying Rp 40,000.
At the time, the School Principal and several other teachers present indicated that the committee fees were based on agreements between parents and the committee board.
Nevertheless, to determine whether these voluntary committee fee regulations should be enforced or not, they stated they are awaiting further coordination.
Meanwhile, when contacted about a student being barred from exams due to unpaid school committee fees, the Committee Chairman redirected the matter to the committee secretary.
“How about contacting the secretary instead? I’m currently unwell. I’ll try to provide the contact number so they can explain,” said the Chairman, who ultimately did not provide the secretary’s contact information.
It is known that the school committee payment card is signed and stamped by the Committee Chairman and the School Principal as the acknowledging parties, along with the signature of the cash recipient.
