Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Tafa Satele is a single dad. He is a farmer and a chef. He is very adamant about exercising and living healthy. So when his 13-year-old son came home last week and told him that he had taken the lymphatic filariasis pills during a Mass Drug Administration (MDA) at his school, St. Theresa in Leone, Satele was not happy.

As a matter of fact, he was livid.

"Nobody has a right to sign a consent form for my child," Satele said. "I am very careful and particular about the things my kids take; so if I don't want them to drink the filariasis pills, nobody should force them, by signing my kids' consent forms in my place."

 (All minor students must present a signed parental consent form to DOH representatives before they are permitted to take the filariasis pills.)

Satele and his kids visited the Samoa News building last Thursday to tell their side of the story. According to the boy, who is a student at St. Theresa School in Leone, his dad did not sign the consent form granting DOH officials permission to give him the filariasis pills.

Instead, he told Samoa News, he saw his teacher sign it. The boy told Samoa News the teacher’s first name, but could not provide a last name. Samoa News has a copy of the signed consent form, the same form that was presented to the DOH employees who conducted the MDA last week for St. Theresa students.

When his son told him he had taken the pills at school, Satele started to wonder how that happened, as he specifically remembered ripping up the consent form when his son brought it home.

 (Satele said that after numerous attempts to contact the school, to request a copy of the consent form, he finally got a hold of a school official who directed him to DOH, where he was able to pick up the consent form that he then provided to Samoa News).

Satele is one of a handful of parents who have voiced to Samoa News their concerns regarding the lymphatic filariasis pills.

He said his son was never asked if he was allergic to any medication, and there were never any questions about his medical history.

"All they did was look at a forged consent form before giving my son several pills to drink," Satele said. "That's not right. I didn't want my kids to take these pills because I don't even know what's in them; I don't know if they may be allergic to them; I am not certain how their bodies will react to them."

Satele said that while thousands of people on island are supporting the MDA, he works shirtless on his farm — for hours — almost everyday and he has not developed elephantiasis yet, although he's had hundreds of mosquito bites.

"DOH needs to have a protocol in place," Satele said. "There needs to be a way to protect our kids. Forged consent forms, and the lack of questions concerning medical background have me worried. These are standard things that need to be addressed, especially when it involves kids and medication drugs."

Satele said DOH officials need to be on the ball by ensuring that all their bases are covered when dealing with kids.

"These are children. I know my son grabbed a permission slip, filled it out with his name and personal information, and stood in line because he saw everyone else at school doing it," Satele said. "But that doesn't give his teacher the authority to sign it in my place. She failed to do the right thing and in reality, she put my son's life at risk. What would have happened if my son developed a reaction to the meds? What if this permission slip was for a field trip and my son got hurt? There needs to be more stringent controls in place to protect the kids — and the parents."

Satele has aired his frustrations out on social media, and his post has garnered much support from parents wondering if teachers at the schools their children attend are forging signatures for things that require parental consent. "Sue them" was one of the comments made under Satele's post.

And yes, he says he is looking at taking legal action.