FG ‘must ensure’ safety of whistleblowers

Stakeholders have called on the federal government to secure the safety of whistleblowers.

They made the call at the national summit on whistleblowing which held in Abuja.

The summit was organised by the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) in collaboration with the house of representatives committee on financial crimes, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ).

More than 80 participants from over 50 organisations attended it.

Participants at the summit called on the federal government to set up an independent governance structure to manage the whistleblowing initiative and take charge of recoveries made through the initiative, to ensure accountability. 

The participants also lamented the lack of coordination in the fight against corruption among the various anti-corruption and security agencies in the country, calling on the government to ensure that the agencies close their ranks.

“The delay on the part of the federal government in constituting the boards of parastatals and MDAs, including those of some anti-corruption agencies, in the past two years, is hampering the fight against corruption,” they said.

“Measures should be urgently put in place by relevant agencies to address the security of whistle-blowers and resolve cases of persons who are persecuted for giving out information.

“There is an urgent need for government to set up independent governance structure comprising representatives of anti-corruption agencies and credible Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to oversee the implementation of the whistleblower policy.”

The participants urged the national assembly to pass into law the whistle-blower protection and other relevant bills to boost the fight against corruption.