African Center for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), has called on President Tinubu’s administration to facilitate the passage of the whistleblower protection bill into law.
AFRICMIL Coordinator, Dr. Chido Onumah stated this on Thursday, at a one-day review meeting of stepdown training on strengthening the Capacity of Community-based organizations on whistleblowing and whistleblower protection themed, ‘Sharing Impact by CBOs on the Promotion of Whistleblowing policy in Anambra State’.
Addressing the gathering in Awka, Anambra State capital, Onumah, who was represented by Senior Program Officer, Ugwu Nkechi emphasized that the group had made progress by ensuring approval of the bill by the Federal Executive Council last December, stressing that it was already working with partners to ensure the enactment of the law as quickly as possible.
He said, “As you all are aware, protection of whistleblowers is crucial to the success of whistleblowing policy implementation. Unfortunately, there’s no law yet to back the policy.
“But we’re no longer where we were when we came here for the town hall meeting and the stepdown training. We have made progress by ensuring the bill was approved by the Federal Executive Council last December.
“We are already working with partners to ensure the enactment of the law as quickly as possible.”
Dr. Onumah also stated that the group regrets the inability of former president Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to pass the whistleblowing protection draft bill into law before expiration of its tenure.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr.Godwin Oche, the State Resident Anti-Corruption Commissioner of Independent Corruption Practices Commission (ICPC), said the Commission while deploying the whistle blowing tool to great success, had recovered cash and properties, including vehicles, farm lands buildings, schools and hotels.
Represented by Officer in-charge of Public Enlightenment and Education, Inalegwu Shaibu, he regretted that the commission had faced challenges in terms of false information which has led to prosecution of the whistle-blower.
He affirmed that the commission had also offered protection to some of the whistle-blowers that have come under attack from the people and agencies indicted.
“Fighting corruption in a developing nation like Nigeria remains a work in progress. The ubiquitous litanies of woes of corruption on our moral, socio-economic and national development is very alarming.
“It therefore requires joint efforts of state and non-state actors to reduce corruption in Nigeria to the barest minimum and birth a country of our dream,” he said.
On his part, Prince Chris Azor, chairman of the Anambra Civil Society Network (ACSONET), noted that corruption simply means misappropriation of our commonwealth, stressing it remained the rights of citizens to hold their leaders who he referred to as servants, accountable.
“We are proud to note that Community Based Organizations have been monitoring projects at their localities and these steps have been yielding dividends,” he said.
