COVID-19: Bolivia sacks, imprisons Health Minister for over-pricing equipment

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By Francis Ogwo

Bolivia has sacked its Health Minister, Marcelo Navajas, and kept him behind bars for a corruption investigation into overpricing of ventilators used in the saving of lives from the ravaging coronavirus, the attorney general said on Sunday.

According to the country’s Attorney General, Ruddy Terrazas, the Health Minister was dismissed from office following his arrest on Wednesday as part of an investigation into the purchase of 179 ventilators from a Spanish company for almost $5 million, around two and a half times their advertised price.

While speaking with a cross-section of journalists, Attorney General Ruddy Terrazas said a judge had remanded Navajas and three other Health Ministry officials in “pre-trial detention” following a hearing that lasted 12 hours and ended in the early hours of Sunday.

While the investigations are carried out, authorities revealed that Navajas would be behind bars for three months while other officials, for six months.

The Bolivia judge, in addition to the arrests, also placed two more officials under house arrest for over-pricing the ventilators.

Recall that earlier in May, the World Bank made US$170 million funds for Bolivia in the fight against COVID-19.

The fund was used to purchase equipment and materials for Covid-19 prevention, screening and treatment including the protection of its healthcare professionals.

Major purchases from the funds, according to reports, included diagnostic and screening equipment and supplies for intermediate and intensive care, including mechanical ventilators and vital signs monitors, which are the equipment and medicines needed for treating the sick.

It also included isolation disinfection and protection materials for staff at healthcare facilities; and the adaptation of hospital facilities. This procurement package was prioritized by the Ministry of Health.

In the meantime, the Bolivia Ministry of Health reported about 249 new infections of the COVID-19 virus in the country, the majority, in the department of Santa Cruz, resulting to an accumulated total of 3,826 infected people.

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