Maputo — The governor of the central Mozambican province of Manica, Mauricio Vieira, told a press conference on Tuesday there is strong evidence that money has been stolen from the state coffers at the Provincial Directorate of Planning and Finance, reports Wednesday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".

He said that proceedings on this matter are underway at the Provincial Attorney's Office to identify and neutralize the perpetrators. It is believed that staff at the Provincial Finance and Education Directorates in Manica are involved.

"A number of proceedings have been filed with the relevant authorities, including the Attorney's Office. It is up to those authorities to carry out the necessary investigations and reach clear conclusions", he said, explaining that this case is no longer of an admnistrative character, but has been handed to the judicial authorities.

If the authorities can prove the involvement of the suspects, extreme measures will be taken against them, Vieira promised, because "when we talk about public funds, that is a serious matter, and nobody should use that money for their personal interests. We need money to develop our country and our province. We cannot accept that public funds serve personal interests".

"There are proceedings filed with the Public Prosecutor, and there are others still under preparation. This is an irreversible process, and one day the situation will be sorted out once and for all, because it is of a great concern for us", said Vieira, mentioning no names of the suspects or the amounts involved.

However, reporters learnt that there are more than one million meticais (38.500 US dollars) involved, fraudulently siphoned off in a combined action between officials of the two Directorates.

Vieira added that in the Provincial Education Directorate there is evidence of 'embezzlement through fraudulent actions, such as the duplication of timetables, and invention of non existent classes".

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