Maputo — Six managers of primary schools in the central Mozambican province of Sofala have been sentenced to prison terms of between four and six years, according to a report in the Beira daily paper "Diario de Mocambique".

The three primary schools concerned are all in Mafambisse, in Dondo district. The Dondo district court found the six men - Gabriel Malotane, Mugote Maimure, Filipe Njinga, Horacio Muavassa, Baptista Inacio and Manuel Langa - guilty of stealing 430,000 meticais (about 11,950 US dollars) from state coffers.

Other crimes committed by the six included falsification of documents, violation of management rules, and payment of undue remuneration.

The judge, Alberto Assane, noted that initially the prosecution accused the six of stealing slightly more than 228,000 meticais. But evidence produced during the trial pushed the amount up to 430,000 meticais. The money was stolen between January and September 2009.

The scheme used by the six managers involved paying out fictitious wages and fictitious overtime. The court found that not all the Mafambisse teachers signed for their wages after receiving them, thus making double payments possible.

The managers also falsified the teachers' attendance charts. They included overtime that had never been worked, and payment for classes that had never been taught.

The money from the state budget entered the schools' accounts, and cheques were then issued to the managers, or money deposited in their personal bank accounts, as if this were part of their normal, legitimate salary.

In addition to the prison terms, the six men must also repay the 430,000 meticais they stole.