The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has charged the Education Deputy Director for the Erongo Region, Natalia Guriras, and a colleague, Betty Somses, with allegedly providing false information to admit Somses to a teachers’ programme at UNAM.

Guriras and Somses were arrested on Wednesday in Swakopmund.

ACC Interim Spokesperson Marina Matundu explained that the Directorate allegedly provided false information to UNAM to secure the admission of Somses, an administrative officer of hostels, in 2018.

The programme is specifically designed for unqualified teachers currently teaching in schools and is funded by the ministry.

Matundu noted that by enrolling Somses, who was not a teacher, the Directorate allegedly acted contrary to UNAM’s admission criteria and programme requirements.

The ACC revealed that a whistleblower claimed the Directorate falsely indicated that Somses was employed as a teacher at Daleen Pre-Primary School.

However, it is alleged that no such school exists within the region.

It is therefore alleged that the Directorate of Education provided false information to UNAM to facilitate the enrolment of an administrative officer in a programme intended exclusively for unqualified teachers and further misrepresented the existence of a bogus school as the applicant’s place of employment.

The accused made their first court appearance in the Swakopmund Magistrate’s Court, where family members, colleagues, and friends turned up in numbers to show moral support.

The suspects were each granted N$10,000 bail, and their case was postponed to 24 August 2026 for plea and trial.