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China sentences former drugs chief to death
4 Jun 2007
A Chinese court has sentenced to death the former director of the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) on charges of corruption.
Zheng Xiaoyu had headed China’s pharmaceutical watchdog agency from 1998 to 2005, after rising through the ranks of state-owned pharmaceutical companies. Following a 2 week trial, he was convicted of accepting bribes and gifts to the value of almost half a million British pounds to fast-track some drugs. Additionally, eight companies were allowed to circumvent the approval process. Investigators also found that Zheng lowered standards in renewing drug production licences which led to the manufacture of fake drugs.
In one example from 2006, an antibiotic approved by his agency killed at least 10 patients before it was taken off the market. The transgressions were not restricted to drugs however, and included other contaminated goods.
The severe sentence comes amidst growing domestic as well as international concern about the quality and regulation of Chinese goods.
