THE Coalition for Whistleblower Protection and Press Freedom (CWPPF) has called on the Federal Civil Service to protect a whistleblower, Richard Oghenerhoro.
The coalition made the call in a statement released on Thursday while reacting to the disciplinary action taken against Oghenerhoro for uncovering fake employment in the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in Abuja and making his finding public.
He was found guilty of misconduct, breach of oath of secrecy, unauthorised disclosure of official information and copying of official documents, contrary to the provisions of the Public Service Rules.
The whistleblower is facing termination of appointment or forced retirement.
CWPPF described the disciplinary action as “a risible attempt to stifle freedom of expression and a total disregard for the 2016 Whistleblowers Policy”.
The coalition stated that since the Federal Government introduced the policy as a strategy to curb corruption in Nigeria, there have been several cases of stigmatisation of whistleblowers.
The group insisted on protection for Oghenerhoro.
Parts of the statement read, “Whistleblowing is an important tool for fighting corruption. Mr Oghenehoro’s disclosure is timely and important considering the recent report about delisting 70,000 ghost workers in the Federal Civil Service.
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