Five employees involved in a corruption scandal involving several procurement staff at three hospitals affiliated to the Ministry of Health and Welfare have been indicted and removed from their positions, the ministry said yesterday.
A computer equipment company’s manager, surnamed Lin (林), had for the past 10 years allegedly bribed six procurement staff and managers with cash, cell phones and drinks with female escorts to win procurement tenders for computer equipment and supplies at three ministry-affiliated hospitals, the Chinese-language Mirror Media magazine reported yesterday.
After a whistle-blower reported the illegal conduct and prosecutors initiated an inspection, Lin confessed to his crimes and agreed to turn state’s evidence, so the case is under judicial review, the report said.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Later yesterday, the health ministry said in a news release that the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau’s Taichung office on Sept. 20 last year asked Tainan Hospital, Chiayi Hospital and Puzi Hospital for computer equipment and documents for supplies procured from 2012 to last year. It also interviewed personnel associated with the case.
Among the personnel involved, one person was not indicted, while five were and they are now under judicial review, the health ministry said.
Hospital and Social Welfare Organizations Administration Commission Deputy Executive Director Yang Nan-ping (楊南屏) said the three hospitals had launched administrative investigations as soon as they were informed of the case by prosecutors, and reported it to the health ministry.
Three managers were given major demerits and two staff members were given admonitions by the three hospitals’ appraisal committees in December last year, and two of the five indicted employees have resigned, while the others were transferred to posts not related to procurement, Yang said.
The commission has asked the three hospitals to submit a report on their audit mechanisms for small procurements, inter-entity supply contracts and calls for tenders, he said.
The hospitals would also shorten the time between regular job rotations to every two to three years for procurement staff, Yang said.
The hospitals should be responsible for supervision and management, while the health ministry would send inspectors to conduct on-site inspections, he added.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS