Authorities in Kyotera district have arrested two men accused of fraudulently working as government primary school teachers for more than 15 years despite lacking the required academic qualifications. The suspects, identified as Charles Sseruwu and John Kavuma, allegedly infiltrated the government payroll through fraudulent means and continued receiving salaries while serving at Kakunyu Primary School in Kabira sub-county.Kyotera district education officer Lawrence Ssekyondwa said the arrests followed investigations launched after a whistleblower questioned the duo’s academic credentials.According to Ssekyondwa, investigations established that Sseruwu had been impersonating Joseph Kabazzi, a qualified teacher who was reportedly discharged from the teaching profession due to mental health challenges.He alleged that Sseruwu, a relative of Kabazzi, continued earning a government salary using Kabazzi’s identity. Investigators also found that Kavuma had been irregularly recruited into the teaching service and placed on the government payroll despite lacking the minimum academic qualifications required for the profession.Ssekyondwa said investigators recovered suspicious academic documents, appointment letters and posting instructions, in addition to recording statements from the suspects’ relatives, which helped establish the alleged fraud.The two suspects have since been handed over to police as investigations continue. Authorities are also pursuing the recovery of salaries they allegedly received illegally over the past 15 years.Kyotera district chief finance officer Robert Kyambadde confirmed that payroll records show Sseruwu had been receiving a government salary under the name of Joseph Kabazzi, while Kavuma is suspected to have secured employment using forged academic credentials.“We also need to establish why the headteachers failed to thoroughly verify the identities and qualifications of these individuals. We believe the suspects can help expose the wider network behind this scheme,” Kyambadde said.Kyotera deputy resident district commissioner Mathias Mulindwa described the incident as a wake-up call for the district administration, saying authorities would intensify the verification of civil servants amid fears that more impersonators could still be on the government payroll.The alleged fraud is believed to have started before the creation of Kyotera district, with the suspects reportedly joining the government payroll when the area was still part of Rakai district before the two administrative units were separated in 2017.The case has revived memories of a 2016 human resource audit by the Inspector General of Government (IGG), which uncovered about 200 ghost workers and unqualified civil servants on the payroll of the then Rakai district, costing the government millions of shillings.The post Two quack teachers arrested in Kyotera over fraudulently receiving govt salary for 15 years appeared first on The Observer Media Ltd.