Bribery

The anti-corruption prosecutors who are dealing with the Novartis case are trying to find evidence of bribes being paid to politicians.

So far, there are only statements from the three protected witnesses linking politicians to the alleged bribes paid by the Swiss pharmaceutical giant to secure preferential treatment.

Anti-corruption prosecutors and police have been searching homes and workplaces linked to the Novartis case over the last few days, Kathimerini has learnt.

According to sources, authorities searched the home and office of the former secretary of New Democracy vice president Adonis Georgiadis on Friday and Saturday.

Romania's Supreme Court on Thursday jailed former Finance Minister Darius Valcov for eight years for influence peddling, money laundering and transactions that were incompatible with his position in the administration.

Konstantinos Frouzis, who served as vice president of Novartis Greece, has denounced the alleged medical bribery scandal involving the Swiss drug-maker as a "gross farce," while calling for the case file to be made public.

"This grose farce that we've been experiencing in recent days will soon come to an end," Frouzis wrote on Facebook on Wednesday.

Opposition New Democracy has accused the left-led government of interfering with the course of an investigation into allegation that Swiss drug firm Novartis paid bribes in Greece to receive preferential treatment.

Two former senior officials of the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) received suspended prison sentences over the weekend after being found guilty of taking bribes to help businesses in Greece's tourism sector by a Thessaloniki court.

An Athens court has found Tassos Mandelis, a former socialist transport minister, guilty of money laundering.

The defendant's bribery conviction (for which he could face up to life in prison), however, was time-barred under the statute of limitations.

A Chinese billionaire who wanted to build a UN conference centre in Macao was found guilty of bribery of UN officials by the New York court, the Associated Press reported.

The government is examining new ways to crack down on the enduring phenomenon of under-the-table payments, or "fakelakia," for treatment at public hospitals, Health Minister Andreas Xanthos has told Kathimerini.

As a cross-party parliamentary committee prepares to investigate instances of corruption in Greece's health sector, Justice Minister Stavros Kontonis said that a scandal embroiling the Swiss pharmaceutical firm Novartis and thousands of Greek doctors and health professionals, "surpasses" the notorious Siemens cash-for-contracts affair.