STAKEHOLDERS advocating for good governance and a corruption-free, decent society in Nigeria have called for an effective whistleblower law to protect citizens who volunteer information on wrongdoings.
They made the call recently at a policy roundtable meeting organised by the African Centre for Media & Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), the Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development (PRIMORG), and the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Foundation (SMYF) in Abuja.
“Whistleblowers play a positive, legitimate, and crucial role in the prevention of, and in the fight against corruption and the promotion of human rights in Nigeria and around the world, said Chido Onumah, AFRICMIL Coordinator at the event.
While noting that the United Nations laws recognise whistleblowers’ roles, he said instead of being appreciated for what they do, they are hunted by people whose interests they threaten.
“Regrettably, in Nigeria, whistleblowers face a lack of a safe and enabling legal environment that allows them to report wrongdoing without fear of reprisals.
“This lack of effective whistleblower protection regime is compounded by the existence of ineffective access to information laws that would enable citizens to obtain information held by public institutions and empower them to hold powerful individuals and entities to account,” Onumah added.
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