Big pharma probed for international corruption - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka is still embroiled in a battle against the pharmaceuticals mafia and government leaders are apparently playing games with the people on the implementation of Prof. Senaka Bibile’s Essential Medicines Concept. Against this backdrop, Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) on Thursday made a shocking disclosure that should open the eyes of the government and the people.

Britain’s Serious Fraud Office said it was working with authorities in China in the first major Anglo-Chinese cooperation as it carries out its own investigation into alleged corruption by the biggest transnational pharmaceutical corporation GlaxoSmithKline better known as GSK.

According to a Reuter report SFO head David Green said “certainly, so far as I am aware it is the first time we have had cooperation with the Chinese on an SFO case”. Mr. Green who had visited China earlier this year, said the Chinese government had a clear interest in rooting out bribery and corruption although it might have “slightly different perspectives” than the SFO.

The SFO launched a formal criminal investigation into Britain’s biggest drugmaker in May, posing a new challenge to the company which has been accused by Chinese police of funnelling up to 3 billion yuan (US$480 million) in bribes to encourage doctors to use its medicines. The SFO action came less than two weeks after Chinese police announced on May 14 that they had charged the former British boss of GSK’s China business and other colleagues with corruption.

The US Department of Justice is also investigating the multinational corporation for possible breaches of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits payments to government officials, including stateemployed doctors, to obtain business overseas. Since the case in China blew up in July last year, allegations of GSK bribery have surfaced in other countries and GSK is now investigating claims that bribes were also paid to doctors in Poland, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon. The Sri Lanka government also needs to conduct such investigations.

We urge Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena, who is courageously fighting a fiery battle against the tobacco giants, to take an initiative to probe the work of the pharmaceutical giants also because medicinal drugs are a vital factor for the health of our people.

GSK Chief Executive Andrew Witty has described the allegations in China as “shameful”. However, he declined to comment in detail about the case when questioned by reporters after presenting secondquarter results.

“I remain very concerned about allegations concerning our China business. The situation is complicated and difficult and while the investigation is active there is little I can add,” Mr. Witty said.

In March this year after delay of about nine years the Health Minister presented a bill to regulate and monitor the purchase prescription and sale of medicinal drugs and devices. The Minister indicated the government was fulfilling its promise to implement Senaka Bibile’s Essential Medicines Concept. But most independent health analysts believe that the proposed bill is seriously flawed with some health action experts even alleging that pharmaceutical companies may have had a say in drafting this bill.