The defendants at Hà Nội People’s Court’s first-instance trial on Monday. — VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Kiên

HÀ NỘI — The Hà Nội People’s Court on Monday opened a first-instance trial of 55 defendants in a major bribery case involving the Vietnam Food Safety Authority (FSA) under the Ministry of Health.

Among the defendants are two former directors of the FSA, Nguyễn Thanh Phong and Trần Việt Nga, along with two former deputy directors, Nguyễn Hùng Long and Đỗ Hữu Tuấn, and 30 subordinate officials.

All the defendants have been prosecuted by the Supreme People’s Procuracy for receiving bribes under Article 354 of the Penal Code.

The remaining 21 defendants, including business representatives and service intermediaries, have been charged with offering bribes under Article 364 of the Penal Code.

The five-member trial panel comprises two judges and three people’s jurors, chaired by Judge Lưu Ngọc Cảnh, deputy chief judge of the Criminal Court of the Hà Nội People’s Court. One prosecutor from the Hà Nội People’s Procuracy and four prosecutors from the Supreme People’s Procuracy have been assigned to exercise prosecutorial authority and supervise the trial proceedings.

In this case, 34 defendants, all affiliated with the FSA, are charged with the same offence of receiving bribes. In addition to the two former directors and two former deputy directors, the group includes 15 officials from the Food Safety Application and Training Centre, the Legal and Inspectorate Division, the Planning and Finance Division and the Standards Management and Testing Division.

Another 12 defendants worked in the Food Product Management Division, while three others served in the Food Poisoning Surveillance and Communications Division.

The remaining 21 defendants charged with offering bribes include five individuals from Novaco Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company, nine defendants from companies engaged in food and pharmaceutical services and seven individual service providers.

Of the 55 defendants, 34 are being held in pre-trial detention, while 21 are out on bail. More than 80 lawyers from over 60 law firms have registered to defend the defendants’ lawful rights and interests.

The court has also summoned more than 30 individuals with related rights and obligations to attend the trial.

According to the indictment, the FSA, a specialised agency under the Ministry of Health, took advantage of regulatory provisions. A number of current and former leaders, specialists and officials, together with certain individuals and enterprises, engaged in bribery related to several administrative procedures between 2018 and 2025.

These included the appraisal and issuance of certificates of receipt for product declaration dossiers, approval of advertising content and the inspection, post-inspection and issuance of GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices for food safety) certificates.

Regarding the appraisal of product declaration dossiers, Decree No 15/2018/NĐ-CP, which took effect on February 2, 2018, introduced new requirements that created significant difficulties for businesses and individuals in completing their applications, particularly those related to providing scientific evidence of product efficacy and dosage.

Exploiting these challenges, FSA officials repeatedly issued requests for dossier amendments and supplements using vague and unclear language, deliberately prolonging the issuance of certificates of receipt.

To complete their dossiers and obtain certificates more quickly, some service providers and businesses reached agreements with FSA specialists to pay unofficial fees, typically ranging from VNĐ5 million-10 million per dossier, depending on the timing and type of application.

These payments were reported by specialists to department heads and centre directors, who in turn informed leaders, including Nguyễn Thanh Phong, Nguyễn Hùng Long and Đỗ Hữu Tuấn. These leaders approved the arrangements and agreed on a mechanism for sharing the illicit proceeds, according to the indictment.

The trial is expected to last 10 days. — VNS