The Whistle Blower Policy introduced in 2016 by the Federal Ministry of Finance to encourage a confidential culture through which corruption in the public sector could be easily detected, exposed, addressed and punished, died on arrival because the interest of majority of Nigerians was the mouth-watering monetary reward aspect which promised whistle blowers 2.5 - 5% of illicit funds or of recovered concealed assets!

The Policy which was not an Act of Parliament heightened the craze for quick money which confidants of treasury looters seized to expose their malfeasant principals in order to acquire their shares of the fraud and simultaneously opened floodgates to unscrupulous law enforcers who recovered the funds to covet large portions of every successful raid!


EFCC, WHISTLE BLOWERS AND DEFENCE LAWYERS QUARREL OVER NGN 850 BILLION REWARD!

In November 2017, Whistle Blowers, defence lawyers and some unscrupulous officials of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), fought dirty over the N850million naira reward for the recovery of USD$43.4million, NGN23.3milliom and 27,800 Euros, concealed in one apartment of the Osborne Towers situated in Ikoyi, Lagos Island on 22nd April, 2017!

Defence Lawyer to three friends who disclosed the hidden Ikoyi loot to EFCC threatened to take legal action before the matter was resolved and a sum of NGN421million was paid to one on 13th December 2017, to Stephen Sunday, the lead whistle blower by the Federal Ministry of Finance, and it was reported that he flew out of the country for safety!

Whereas, amounts paid to the other two friends of Stephen could not be ascertained!
Alleged malfeasant EFCC operatives tried fruitlessly to outsmart the three bona-fide squealers who exposed the Osborne loot linked to DG National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Mr. Ayo Oke, whose where about remains a mystery till date!

There was a controversy over the authentic whistle blower in respect of the cache of monies recovered from the flat at Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos State in April 2017, and the last Nigerians heard about the whistle blower reward was in December of the same year when the much-traumatised authentic principal whistle blower Stephen Sunday got certain amount of money not up to 2.5% of the recovered sum because of insincerity on the part of covetous EFCC operatives and Federal Ministry of Finance!

Stephen’s lawyer who had earlier threatened court litigation against the anti-graft agency, claimed that EFCC officials subjected his client to emotional trauma through the administration of psychotic drugs at the Yaba Psychiatric Hospital, Lagos, which they claimed cost NGN 250,000 naira “to cure him of an assumed madness” believed to have been caused by the sudden windfall of tremendous riches!

Apart from Stephen’s lawyer, another legal firm which also claimed to represent Stephen and his two co-whistle blowers, Abdulmumin Musa and Bala Usman with whom he informed EFCC about the discovery, also petitioned the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, to compel EFCC to pay the reward to the THREE MEN!

It is very pertinent for the new EFCC Administration under Abdulrasheed Bawa to re-open the OSBORNE CASE and fish out culpable officers who would likely damage his reputation if urgent measures were delayed!


WHISTLE BLOWER POLICY WAS BUHARI’S BABY!

Although the Whistle Blowers and Witness Protection Policy was President Buhari’s innovation, his ambitious manifesto to crush corruption from its very root in the polity, his six-year occupation of Aso Rock Villa has debuted the worst kind of the infectious disease in two decades of the nation’s new democratic dispensation!

However the 9th Senate reintroduced the old Policy as one of 11 Bills read for the first time at plenary in November 2019, to seek protection for whistle blowers and witnesses with provision for financial rewards to encourage citizens who expose corruption and protection against victimisation or loss of jobs!

The reason for NASS reintroduction could not be far-fetched because President Buhari’s determination’s to stamp out the evil crime of corruption backfired and festered the malaise beyond imaginable proportion instead of reducing it!


ICPC CHAIRMAN IS NEW WHISTLE BLOWER WHO CANNOT BE GAGGED!

The Independent Corrupt Practices and related Offences Commission (ICPC), Chairman Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, has confirmed that there was gross abuse of personnel budget as duplication of projects by some Federal Ministries Department and Agencies (MDAs), amounting to NGN20,138 billion!
He disclosed that a review by his anti-graft agency revealed that duplication and padding occurred in the implementation of the 2021 Budget which involved about 257 projects adding that ICPC was investigating Ministry of Labour for corrupt employment/ issuance of fake letters of employment and fraudulently enrolling them on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and posting them to unsuspecting MDAs to work! Also on the ICPC searchlight are the University College Hospital, Ibadan and corrupt staff members of MDAs suspected of massive illegal recruitment!

In his privileged position as an academic and head of such an anti-corruption government institution, Professor Owasanoye’s claims which include but not limited to; massive budgetary scams, unilateral increase in wages, indiscriminate travels resulting in high inflation of personnel budget among other financial improprieties reflecting huge wage bills up to about 70% of annual budget can neither be faulted, wished away nor dismissed!

He also disclosed that ICPC was prosecuting one of the leaders of the syndicate from whose custody several fake letters of recommendation purportedly signed by the Chief of Staff to the President, Honourable Ministers, Federal Civil Service Commission and other high-ranking Nigerians!

ICPC RECOVERS 300 HOUSES FROM TWO CIVIL SERVANTS IN ABUJA!

In the October, 2021, the ICPC Chairman disclosed at a Public Hearing on Real Estate, organised by the HOR Ad Hoc Committee on Investigation of Operations of Real Estate Developers in the FCT, that the anti-graft agency recovered over 300 Houses from two civil servants in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FTC)!

He expressed dismay that public officers were using real estate developers as conduits for illicit financial flows!

It is therefore gratifying that the House of Representatives (HOR), has already moved to confirm all recent findings of the ICPC boss which were contained in his welcome address at the 3rd National Summit on Diminishing Corrupting in the Public Service and Presentation of Public Service Integrity Award held at the State House Conference Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday 30th November 2021.


OFFICIAL PROTECTION FOR WHISTLE BLOWERS!

Although the Whistle Blowers and Protection of Witness Act sought to (1) Encourage, (2) Facilitate disclosure of malfeasance by public officers/bodies and (3) Protect such disclosures under the law, two major Clauses: 34 and 45 of the were categorical on gains and stringent punishment of not less than five years or a fine of NGN10 million for false alarms by whistle blowers!

Whistle Blowers are protected from defamation, civil and criminal liability. They also enjoy preclusion/immunity from contractual or other remedies that could be enforced against a whistle blower while monetary incentive of 2.5% of the recovered monies (after all tax deduction), is provided in the Act by Federal Government as reward for genuine disclosures that lead to successful raids!

FEDERAL HIGH COURT SAYS EX-NNPC GMD HAS CASE TO ANSWER!

Another exposed illicit money by a whistle blower also led to the arrest and prosecution of a an ex-Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), Mr. Andrew Yakubu who served between 2012-2014, by the EFCC in February 2017, for allegedly concealing foreign currencies in the sums of USD$9.7 million and 74,000 British Pounds sterling in his Kaduna State Guest House!
As at the time of his arrest the Federal Government law against non-declaration of assets and money laundering/Whistle Blower and Witness Protection Act of December 2016, was in operation!

INSTITUTIONAL LOOTING MUST END WITH ABDULRESHEED BAWA!

Gone are those days when unscrupulous operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), could intimidate, harass, brow-beat and fleece patriotic whistle blowers of their legitimate rewards and get away with such dastard institutional crimes without bating an eye lid!

Young, ebullient, diligent, resilient and resourceful Bawa MUST CLEANSE THE AUGEAN STABLE AND GIVE EFCC A BRAND NEW/IMPECCABLE NAME AND IMAGE! “To whom much is given, much is expected”!





I am, yours sincerely, Dr. David B.A. Olufon. 08130669886, 08080243066. g-mail-dvdolufon@gmail.