The Federal Government says it is committed to guaranteeing the protection of whistleblowers from possible reprisals by handling their reports with utmost confidentiality.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, made this statement at a sensitisation workshop on the implementation of Whistle-blowing Policy in Nigeria, on Wednesday in Abuja
Edun said that the idea was to ensure smooth operation of the policy.
The theme of the workshop was, “Implementation of the Whistle-blowing Policy in Nigeria: Issues, Challenges and Way Forward”.
The Minister said that the focus is on three key areas of the policy, public awareness, protection of whistleblowers, and effective response mechanism.
He added that despite the good intention and achievements of the policy, there is still some public misconception about it.
According to him, this has made regular stakeholders’ engagement indispensable to further enlighten the public on the policy.
“As part of measures to ensure smooth operation of the whistle-blowing policy, government is committed to guaranteeing the whistleblower’s protection from possible reprisals by handling their reports with the utmost confidentiality.
“The policy provides mechanism for this protection, and it is our duty to uphold these provisions and support those who come forward to blow the whistle,” Edun said.
He said that a successful whistle-blowing policy involved receiving verifiable reports, conducting thorough investigations to authenticate them, and taking appropriate action to enforce compliance with the extant laws.
Edun further stated that the policy was part of the government’s strategy to ensure that our public institutions operate with integrity and remain accountable to the Nigerian people.
According to him, it is our collective responsibility to create an environment where the populace feels confident and protected in reporting unethical or illegal activities capable of jeopardising the overall development of the country.
Nigerian Govt restates commitment to protecting whistleblowers