The Ministry of Health has sent a pre-trial claim to public figure Didar Smagulov following his publication about alleged corruption schemes in the procurement of vaccines. The Ministry states that the information disseminated is untrue and damages the department's reputation. Smagulov, in turn, is ready for legal proceedings and claims to rely on official documents.
On her Instagram page, Minister of Health Akmaral Alnazarova explained that the claim demands a retraction of information published on social media. The department believes the public figure's statements undermine citizens' trust in the healthcare system and vaccination in general.
The minister stated that the selection of vaccines in Kazakhstan is made “exclusively on a scientifically sound basis” and is strictly regulated. She emphasised that since 2013, an acellular pertussis vaccine has been used in the country, chosen “based on high safety requirements”.
According to Alnazarova, acellular vaccines are used in more than 30 developed countries, including the USA, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan. She pointed out that Kazakhstan became the first country in Central Asia to introduce this vaccine, despite its high cost.
Alnazarova stated that since the introduction of acellular vaccines, more than 21 million vaccinations have been administered, with no serious adverse reactions registered.
Separately, the minister cited data from the international platform Navlin, according to which Kazakhstan supposedly procures the vaccine at the lowest prices among reference countries. She stated that Smagulov's publication distorts the facts and contains inaccurate information.
“If the retraction is not published within the set time frame, the ministry has the right to go to court,” the statement reads.
In response, Didar Smagulov stated that he expects the legal process and views it as an opportunity to request materials that, in his opinion, the ministry is hiding. He claims that all his statements are based on official documents.
Smagulov disputes the minister's key assertions and claims that:
- the switch to the acellular vaccine in 2013 resulted from problems with re-registering the whole-cell vaccine, not from a scientific choice;
- in countries where acellular vaccines are used, there is an increase in pertussis cases — Smagulov cites data from foreign disease control centres;
- the acellular vaccine requires more booster doses, which, according to Smagulov, leads to increased budgetary spending.
According to the public figure's estimate, the total annual cost of procuring acellular vaccines could be around 27–30 billion tenge.
The situation with Smagulov is reminiscent of the case of the founder of FBRK Kirill Pavlov, against whom an administrative case was opened for spreading false information after using official documents. The company LLP «Sunkar Eavision International LLP» accused FBRK journalists of lying over a publication about the cost of drones, although the disputed information was taken from the official price quotation of the company on the government procurement portal.
Recall that earlier Didar Smagulov stated that there were signs of corruption schemes in the procurement of vaccines for Kazakhstan and sent appeals to the Agency for Civil Service Affairs (ADGS) and the US Embassy. According to him, the Ministry of Health is lobbying for the interests of the French company Sanofi and ignoring the recommendations of the World Health Organisation (WHO).