Vietnam's ex-health minister sentenced to 18 years for buying covid tests at inflated prices
Kyiv • UNN
In Vietnam, ex-ministers, officials, and other officials received various prison sentences for participating in a corruption scheme involving the embezzlement of public funds during the purchase of COVID-19 tests.
A court in Vietnam has handed down a verdict in a corruption case involving COVID-19 tests. The former Minister of Health was sentenced to 18 years in prison for bribes of $2.25 million, and the former Minister of Science received three years for maladministration. This was reported by Reuters, according to UNN.
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The penalties were imposed on two former ministers and several officials as part of an investigation into Viet A Technology Corp, a private medical company accused of producing COVID-19 tests for the state healthcare system at inflated prices.
Accordingly, former Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long was sentenced to 18 years, and former Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh received a 3-year prison term. The court also handed down sentences ranging from 18 months to 15 years in prison to 35 other individuals, mostly officials, who were involved in the corruption scandal.
A local firm that ordered a state research unit to produce coronavirus test kits has been accused of colluding with officials. According to the authorities, the firm unreasonably inflated prices and illegally earned more than $50 million from the sale of the tests.
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These decisions fit into the framework of Vietnam's large-scale campaign against corruption, which has already led to the resignations of numerous high-ranking officials, including the former president and prime minister.
