Nguyen Huu Dong, Deputy Head of the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption, announced this information on the afternoon of 7/7 at a press conference summarizing the morning's meeting results.

The investigation is ongoing. The identities of the suspects and the nature of the offenses have not been disclosed.

Bach Mai Hospital facility 2. Photo: Giang Huy

The Government Inspectorate previously concluded that the construction of the new Bach Mai 2 and Viet Duc 2 hospitals involved numerous violations of bidding, construction, and other relevant regulations across almost all stages. These violations caused delays of more than seven years, requiring two extensions, and prevented the projects from achieving their objectives. The inefficient use of resources in both projects resulted in significant waste and potential losses to the state budget totaling approximately 1,253 billion VND.

The identified violations relate to the process of proposing and approving the hiring of foreign consultants, architectural design plans, and investment projects. Deficiencies and limitations in the investment project development and approval process led to changes and adjustments immediately after contract signing. This increased the advance payment by about 503 billion VND, potentially leading to waste.

The selection of consulting, construction, and medical equipment supply contractors was also cited by the Inspectorate for multiple violations across various stages. Four consulting bidding packages intentionally violated bidding regulations. A medical equipment bidding package had multiple violations related to the preparation, appraisal, and approval of bidding documents and contract negotiations.

According to the Government Inspectorate, the Minister of Health and the Deputy Minister in charge at the time committed violations by approving the hiring of foreign consultants for project planning and design without proper justification or meeting necessary conditions. Their decisions and instructions regarding foreign consulting firms undertaking consulting packages for project development were deemed unlawful. They were also found to be negligent in their management responsibilities, failing to supervise, inspect, and fully exercise their duties and powers as investors.

The Key Medical Facilities Committee and related individuals involved in project management lacked the necessary experience and expertise. The Inspectorate asserted that these individuals "intentionally violated regulations, submitted false reports, lacked honesty and objectivity, and disregarded the appraisals of specialized agencies."

After identifying these violations, the Government Inspectorate transferred the case file and related documents to the Ministry of Public Security for investigation and prosecution of potential "Violations of bidding regulations with serious consequences." This includes four consulting bidding packages and the bidding, contract signing, and implementation processes for a medical equipment package.

The Inspectorate also transferred information to the Ministry of Public Security for investigation and handling of matters involving numerous violations of bidding and construction laws, resulting in waste and potential damage to the state budget.

Vu Tuan - Pham Du