A legal practitioner, Godwin Chigbu, has said there is no law in Nigeria against staff of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies blowing the whistle on heads of such parastatals. Chigbu, Principal Partner of Godwin Chigbu & Associates, made this known at a one-day workshop for law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies held on August 6th 2024, in Abuja.
The workshop, organized by the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) in partnership with the Progressive Impact Organization for Community Development (PRIMORG), was focused on the role of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies in promoting whistleblowing and whistleblower protection in Nigeria.
In his presentation titled, “Whistleblowing in Nigeria: The Role of Anti-corruption and Law Enforcement Agencies,” Chigbu explained that while a stand–alone law was essential for proper whistleblower protection, some specific extant legislations and policies in the country have already imposed confidentiality obligations on the Nigeria Police Force, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Security Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and other law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies.
Chigbu stressed that staff of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies were duty-bound to maintain confidentiality and protect the identity of whistleblowers who may approach their agency to disclose information on wrongdoing.
Addressing the question of staff of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies being instructed never to report the head of their agency for any infraction, the lawyer declared that there was no law in Nigeria preventing staff of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies from reporting erring bosses.
In his presentation titled, “Understanding Nigeria’sWhistleblower Policy,” Johnson Oludare, a DeputyDirector at the Federal Ministry of Finance and head of the whistleblowing unit at the Presidential Initiative onContinuous Audit (PICA),
advised whistleblowers to keep a low profile after blowing the whistle to expose wrongdoing, and to not go about “blowing the trumpet” about their patriotic act.
Oludare explained that the whistleblower policy adopted by the Nigerian government in December 2016, “is an anti-corruption programme that encourages people to, on their own free will, disclose information about fraud, bribery, financial misconduct, stolen funds, theft or any other forms of corruption to the Federal Ministry of Finance or anti-graft agencies.”
The Deputy Director pointed out that at inception the policy spurred many whistleblowers to come forward, leading to significant cash and asset recoveries that were widely reported by the media. However, he acknowledged that some whistleblowers had faced reprisals for blowing the whistle. He therefore advised whistleblowers who chose anonymity to avoid seeking the limelight after blowing the whistle, and allow law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies to investigate the wrongdoing being alleged. He promised that the whistleblower protection bill will soon be sent to the National Assembly for passage into law.
Meanwhile, Coordinator of AFRICMIL, Dr. Chido Onumah, in his own remarks observed that “Whistleblowing has been described as one of the most effective methods of exposing corrupt acts and fostering accountability in the internal management of organizations.”
Dr. Onumah explained that the one-day workshop was designed to “bring together critical institutions tasked with arresting corruption and other crimes that endanger society’s wellbeing with a view to exposing them, providing updates on the whistleblowing policy and the whistleblower protection bill.” He expressed optimism that the workshop would evolve strategies for achieving a prompt passage of the whistleblower protection bill into law “as a way of promoting whistleblowing and strengthening the fight against corruption.”
Participants at the workshop were drawn from the various law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies in the country such as the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), Nugerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), State Security Service (SSS) and others.
