Sao Tome officials in graft case

Several former high-ranking government officials are due to go on trial in Sao Tome, in the island nation's largest corruption scandal.

Millions of dollars vanished from the accounts of a body created in 1993 to manage foreign aid money.

Ex-government ministers are accused of charging cars, foreign trips, phone bills, electoral campaigns and home refurbishments to the organisation.

The accused, who include two former prime ministers, deny any wrongdoing.

Among the alleged costs incurred to the now-defunct Gabinete de Gestao das Ajudas, or GGA, was the bill for redecorating the house of ex-Prime Minister Maria das Neves.

Another former Prime Minister, Guilherme Posser da Costa, is also charged.

The BBC's Maimouna Jallow in Sao Tome says the accused have defended themselves with a common explanation:

They say they used GGA cash because the government simply did not have enough in its coffers to foot the bill.

But our correspondent adds the corruption allegations could have dire consequences in a country where about 90% of its budget comes from foreign aid.