If Nigeria is serious about confronting the entrenched culture of tax fraud, then it must move beyond enforcement theatrics and invest in systems that make accountability inevitable. One such system, often underappreciated but profoundly effective, is whistleblowing.
While the current administration and institutions like the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS) continue to intensify efforts against tax evasion, the reality remains that fraud thrives in silence. Breaking that silence is where whistleblowing becomes indispensable. It is not a foreign concept parachuted into our system; rather, it is deeply rooted in both historical practice and modern governance.
Scholars such as Falana (2018) trace whistleblowing to pre-colonial African societies, where community-based surveillance and reporting were essential tools for maintaining order. In more contemporary terms, ethicist Deni Elliott defines whistleblowing as the act of exposing illegal or unethical conduct to authorities capable of addressing it. At its core, whistleblowing is simply the institutionalisation of vigilance, turning everyday observation into a formal mechanism for justice.
In practical terms, whistleblowing is neither abstract nor complex. It is the employee who flags financial manipulation within their organisation. It is the system that triggers an alarm when irregularities occur. It is, fundamentally, the refusal to look away.
Nigeria has, in fact, flirted with this concept long before formal policies...
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