PM recalls achieving spot among top 100 students in common entrance exam

PRIME Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says she knows what it is like to be poor.

She made this comment during a ceremony at her Siparia constituency office on September 2 to distribute school supplies.

Persad-Bissessar told her audience, "I know what it is like to grow up poor. I know what it is like to need help."

She said, "My parents worked hard, but we had very little. What we did have was love, and an unshakable belief that education was the way out of poverty, a ticket to a better life."

Persad-Bissessar recalled the day she sat the Common Entrance examination which has since been replaced by the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) exam.

"I was elated to learn that I had passed for Iere High School, and even more so, that I had placed among the top 100 students in the country."

She said that result earned her a bursary which proved to be a lifeline for her family.

"The bursary allowed my parents to buy my books, easing a burden that weighed heavily on their shoulders. Without it, I don’t know how they would have managed."

Persad-Bissessar said as Prime Minister and Siparia MP, she has dedicated her life to ensuring that every child has the tools to succeed academically and otherwise.

"That is why we have reintroduced the distribution of laptops to every Form One student in this new school year. Books open the mind. Technology opens the world."

She said, "Together, they guarantee that no child is left behind, and every child has the chance to compete on equal footing."

Persad-Bissessar added, "More than 1,700 children will benefit from this back-to-school initiative. Over 120 students are here with us in Siparia this afternoon, while hundreds more across the surrounding communities will also receive support."

She said, "Each child will receive a school bag, essential stationery, and cash vouchers redeemable at local bookstores — simple but powerful tools that will help them walk into the classroom next week with confidence and dignity."