FCC Launches Probe into 2020 Pack & Blister Deal Scandal

The Financial Crime Commission (FCC) has initiated an investigation into the troubling affairs surrounding Pack & Blister ventilator deal scandal, with concerning developments emerging this week.

On Thursday 20th March, a senior official from the Ministry of Health was interrogated at Réduit Triangle regarding the controversial procurement of ventilators from Pack & Blister amid the COVID-19 health crisis.

During the pandemic, it has also been revealed that the Ministry of Health had purchased almost a million doses of Molcovir, a generic of Molnupiravir, from a new company at more than eight times the market price.

This high-ranking civil servant was called to explain the controversial purchase of these essential devices, which were secured without a tender process.

However, the ventilators did not arrive until an astonishing nine months later.

This significant delay has prompted serious questions about the justification for bypassing standard procurement procedures under such urgent circumstances.

Legal Action Against Pack & Blister

Adding to the mystery of the matter, when the ventilators finally did arrive, they were discovered to be completely non-functional, throwing the decision-making process behind this contract into further disarray.

As a response, former Health Minister Kailesh Jagutpal announced in June 2024 the government’s intention to take legal action against Pack & Blister for the damages incurred, asserting, “We will pursue Pack & Blister for the harm caused.”

The investigation centered on a substantial contract valued at Rs 77.9 million, awarded in late March 2020 for the provision of ventilators aimed at treating patients afflicted by COVID-19.

Source: Defi Media