Fale Andrew Lesā- Stuff investigation reveals flawed CV
john luke made this Official Information request to University of Auckland
The request was successful.
From: john luke
Dear University of Auckland,
Due to recent news coverage and subsequent reports, there has been growing public interest in clarifying the academic background of Fale Andrew Lesā, particularly regarding his studies at the University of Auckland.
Could you please confirm what degree(s) or study programs he has undertaken and completed at your institution? There appear to be conflicting statements circulating online, and it is in the public interest to ensure accurate information is available.
For your reference, I have included examples of public statements he has made regarding his academic background.
2010 - third year studying law and politics at UOA
https://m.facebook.com/watch/?v=69293561...
2020 - studied policy at UOA
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/teenager-e...
2009- second year of joint law and politics degree of UOA
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/defaul...
Date unknown - environmental management UOA
https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2019/11/27/p...
2019 - policy UOA
https://www.myd.govt.nz/news/2012/congra...
2012 - law and political science
Yours faithfully,
john luke
News Reader left an annotation ()
Also FYI, the years above mentioned are when those public sources / articles / websites were published when detailing information about Mr Lesa’s academic record and not necessarily reflecting the years when he studied
From: Landon Watt
University of Auckland
Dear John,
We acknowledge receipt of your request of 30 August 2025. The University will respond as soon as reasonably practicable, within the OIA's maximum time limit (unless extended under the Act).
Unfortunately, the links provided to websites in your email are incomplete - e.g. "https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/teenager-e.... This may be due to fyi.org.nz only supporting plain text format for emails. To provide links to websites, you will need to include the full text for the website address.
Yours sincerely
Landon Watt
Legal Advisor
Office of the Vice-Chancellor
Waipapa Taumata Rau | University of Auckland
show quoted sections
From: john luke
Dear Landon Watt,
See linke,
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-n... - 2010 - third year studying law and politics at UOA
https://www.facebook.com/GUJournal/video... - 2020 - policy UOA
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/teenager-e... second year of joint law and politics degree of UOA
https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2019/11/27/p... -policy UOA
https://www.myd.govt.nz/news/2012/congra... . - 2012 - law and political science UOA
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/36076296... 2025 stuff investigation reveals - “he acknowledged he did not graduate but said he “studied geography as part of the tertiary foundation certificate at the University of Auckland in 2008.”
Yours sincerely,
john luke
From: Landon Watt
University of Auckland
Dear John,
I refer to your request of 30 August 2025. The University's response follows.
"Due to recent news coverage and subsequent reports, there has been growing public interest in clarifying the academic background of Fale Andrew Lesā, particularly regarding his studies at the University of Auckland.
Could you please confirm what degree(s) or study programs he has undertaken and completed at your institution? There appear to be conflicting statements circulating online, and it is in the public interest to ensure accurate information is available."
The requested information about Fale Andrew Lesā is provided below.
1. Mr Lesā studied towards a Tertiary Foundation Certificate at the University of Auckland in 2008.
2. Mr Lesā studied towards a Bachelor of Social Work at the University of Auckland in 2010.
3. Mr Lesā has not completed the Tertiary Foundation Certificate, Bachelor of Social Work, or any other programme of study at the University of Auckland.
Yours sincerely,
Landon Watt
Legal Advisor
Office of the Vice-Chancellor
Waipapa Taumata Rau | University of Auckland
show quoted sections
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Hey John, just an FYI, some of the hyperlinks you included are not loading when one clicks on it so UOA may not be able to access it. I have re-copied the full links for your reference below. You may have to copy it and paste in full URL format first like in a web browser then repasting it or check if it works before making any amendment to your request.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-n... - 2010 - third year studying law and politics at UOA
https://m.facebook.com/watch/?v=69293561... - 2020 - policy UOA
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/teenager-e... -2009- second year of joint law and politics degree of UOA
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/defaul... - date unknown- environmental management UOA
https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2019/11/27/p... -policy UOA
https://www.myd.govt.nz/news/2012/congra... - 2012 - law and political science UOA
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/36076296... - 2025 stuff investigation reveals - “he acknowledged he did not graduate but said he “studied geography as part of the tertiary foundation certificate at the University of Auckland in 2008.”
Link to this