Zheng Xiaoyu

Zheng, 63, was accused of taking bribes worth 6.45 million yuan (nearly $838,000) and dereliction of duty during his tenure as director of SFDA from 1998 until 2005 when he retired. He first came under investigation last December as a result of a probe against his subordinates. The Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court, which accepted Zheng’s case on April 20, is expected to pass judgment by the end of this month.

“It is very likely that all the pharmaceutical companies involved, including Kangliyuan Group in Hainan Province and Double-Dove Group in Zhejiang Province, will be unveiled,” said the 21st Century Business Herald quoting a well-informed source.

SFDA, created in 1998, was vested the sole power in 2002 to approve medicines before they hit the market. Zheng also promoted a certification system called Good Manufacturing Practice, later with which he and a group of officials in the drug watchdog earned illegal profits. Recent food and drug accidents causing casualties and related corruption scandals have sparked off a credibility crisis at SFDA.

Zheng’s family members, his son and wife, as well as several subordinate officials, have also been found of involvement in his case, but they will be prosecuted separately.

After Zheng was investigated, a sweeping disciplinary check has been ongoing in SFDA since late March. “Officials have divested themselves of 3.5 million shares that they hold in pharmaceutical companies, and staff of the SFDA and its affiliated units turned in gifts and money [that received from pharmaceutical companies] valued at over 2.6 million yuan,” said SFDA.

The administration is drafting new regulations to stamp out corruption, including barring its employees from owning shares in pharmaceutical companies. As far as the procedure itself is concerned, SFDA is planning for a collective responsibility system under which new drugs will require the approval procedures of acceptance, appraisal and approval stages to avoid power abuse.