HCMC – Prosecutors have recommended a prison sentence of five to six years for former Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien on charges of violating regulations on the management and use of state assets, causing losses and waste.
The proposed sentence was announced on May 21 during the first-instance trial of the former minister and nine other defendants accused of causing losses and wastefulness totaling nearly VND804 billion at the second campuses of Bach Mai Hospital and Viet Duc Hospital in the former Ha Nam Province.
Prosecutors also proposed prison terms of four to five years for Nguyen Doan Tu, former deputy director of the Department of Medical Equipment and Works under the Ministry of Health, and Tran Van Sinh, former deputy director of the ministry’s Management Board of Key Medical Construction Projects.
Other defendants from consulting firms and inspection institutions face proposed sentences ranging from 30 months to four years in prison.
Prosecutors said Nguyen Chien Thang, former director of the Management Board of Key Medical Projects, was responsible for the case and recommended a combined sentence of up to 30 years in prison for two offenses: violating regulations on management of state assets causing losses and waste, and accepting bribes.
Another defendant, Nguyen Huu Tuan, former director of the Management Board of Key Medical Construction Projects, faces a proposed combined sentence of 23 to 25 years in prison on similar charges.
According to prosecutors, violations linked to two major projects reflected systemic failures that carried over from one stage to another.
From the project preparation phase, the project management board was accused of advising the ministry to approve the hiring of foreign consultants to prepare cost estimates and signing contracts across four bidding packages at rates several times higher than regulated norms without demonstrating necessity. Prosecutors alleged deliberate contractor designation caused state losses of more than VND70 billion.
Authorities said more severe consequences emerged during implementation when the investor adopted a “design while building” approach, proposed splitting bidding packages in violation of the Bidding Law, and signed framework agreements lacking detailed pricing and quantified work items needed for acceptance and payment.
When additional work arose, the projects became stalled because there was no legal basis to amend contracts and disburse funds even though budget allocations had already been arranged.
As a result, both key projects remained completely suspended for four years, from January 2021 through December 2024, causing waste of public resources and state assets estimated at more than VND733 billion.
Separately, prosecutors accused Nguyen Chien Thang and Nguyen Huu Tuan of abusing their positions to pressure contractors into paying unofficial “fees” equivalent to 5% of advance and payment values under project contracts for personal gain.
