FORMER finance minister Ferdinand Tala Ngai, has been sentenced to seven months of hard labour by the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Supreme Court, the court gazette said on Thursday. Ngai, found guilty of embezzlement on Wednesday, was also banned from taking part in politics, holding public office and accepting positions in parastatal companies for five years. The former minister was arrested on October 26 last year while performing his official functions and charged on 17 counts including the embezzlement of $5000.