Vietnam Court sends ex Health Minister to jail for 18 years over Covid Test Kits Scam

The anti-graft campaign in Vietnam has struck down another politician accused of corruption. Former Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long was sentenced to 18 years in prison after a local court in Hanoi got hold of evidence pointing towards a $2.25 million Covid Test Kits Scam.

Team Asianet Newsable

First Published Jan 12, 2024, 6:12 PM IST | Last Updated Jan 12, 2024, 6:12 PM IST

A local Vietnam Court on Friday sent the country's former Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long to 18 years in prison. Nguyen Thanh Long was found guilty of corruption in the Covid Test Kits Scam that swept the country sending shock waves among the health sector as well as the ordinary citizens who relied on the state during the Coronavirus pandemic.

According to a Vietnamese newspaper, the Court found irrefutable evidence of Nguyen Thanh Long taking bribes worth $2.25 million from a local firm. The local firm with many officials colluded to commission a state-funded research unit to produce its Covid test kits at an overstated price. Vietnamese politics has seen such storms before as well due to the anti-graft campaign.

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The anti-graft campaign which has been a stern force against corruption in Vietnam has resulted in the exposure of numerous scandals and delivery of swift justice. Former Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long's part in the Covid Test Kits Scam and his prison sentence is a testament to the success of the anti-graft campaign.

Hundreds of senior officials suspected of corruption have already been questioned strictly under this campaign. Moreover, many have also been forced to quit like former president and premier Nguyen Xuan Phuc and two deputy prime ministers. Nguyen Thanh Long’s case could intensify the campaign further in the country. Nguyen Thanh Long accepted the charges and was quoted saying “I was wrong, I am sorry” at the trial.

The anti-graft campaign deepened by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) resulted in unearthing the largest corruption scandal in Southeast Asia's history last month when a real estate developer embezzled nearly $12.4 billion. The anti-graft campaign began in 2016 in view to clamp down on corruption.

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