Konstantinos Frouzis

After years of delays, a corruption prosecutor in Athens investigating an alleged bribery scandal involving Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis has asked 15 executives of the parent company and its local branch to testify as suspects in the case.

A section of the case file on the alleged Novartis bribery scandal that prosecutors forwarded to Parliament to request that the immunity of former health minister Andreas Loverdos be lifted includes testimony by protected witnesses who claim that the politician was bribed to inform the company of an imminent haircut on Greek state bonds at the peak of the debt crisis.

Officials close to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras have rebuffed media reports suggesting that he met with a senior representative of the Swiss drugs firm Novartis, which is embroiled in allegations of paying bribes to Greek politicians.

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.

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.