Anti-corruption advocates seek stronger protection for whistleblowers

Civil society organisations and anti-corruption agencies have called for stronger legal protection for whistleblowers to strengthen Nigeria’s fight against corruption and improve the tracing and recovery of illicit assets.

They made the call during a stakeholders’ workshop in Abuja on Wednesday, where participants described whistleblowing as one of the most effective tools for exposing corruption but noted that inadequate protection leaves people who provide information vulnerable to reprisals.

The workshop was organised by the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) Resource Centre in collaboration with the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF).

The event themed, “Strengthening Anti-Corruption Capacity & Asset Tracing Frameworks in Nigeria,” brought together civil society organisations, anti-corruption agencies, legal practitioners, the media and other stakeholders to examine ways of improving asset tracing, recovery and public accountability.

Welcoming guests and participants to the event on behalf of Olanrewaju Suraju, the HEDA chairperson, the Executive Secretary of the organisation, Arigbabu Sulaimon, described illicit financial flows, systemic corruption and sophisticated concealment of stolen public assets as major threats to Nigeria’s economic stability, public infrastructure and national security.

He added that “over the past two decades, the nature of financial crime has undergone a radical revolution.”

He noted that traditional methods of siphoning public funds had evolved into sophisticated global networks involving offshore shell companies, nominee directorships, complex legal trusts, digital assets and high-value real estate investments in destinations such as Dubai, London, the US and beyond.

Therefore, he said there was a need for a joint action plan to establish concrete protocols for inter-agency intelligence sharing and asset recovery to strengthen the fight against corruption.

CSOs examine open-source intelligence, whistleblower protection

The first technical session at the event focused on “Leveraging Open Source Intelligence and Community-Led Mechanisms to Tackle Illicit Assets and Public Expenditure” and “Enhancing Institutional Protections and Safe Reporting Channels for Whistleblowers.”

The session brought together representatives of civil society and public institutions.

Some of the participants included Mr Sulaimon of HEDA, Muhammad Gimba, Senior Specialist/Data Analyst, Connected Development (CODE); Thaddeus Jolayemi, Acting Head, Open Governmental and Institutional Partnership, BudgIT.

Others are Godwin Onyeacholem, Programme Manager, African Centre for Media & Information Literacy (AFRICMIL); and Bathsheba Tagwai, Senior Legal Officer and Programme Manager, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).

The panel empahsised whistleblowing as one of the ways of fighting corruption, regretting that such protection for whistleblowers was lacking in Nigeria.

The CSOs linked whistleblowing to freedom of expression and freedom of speech, arguing that people cannot freely exercise those rights if they face retaliation for exposing wrongdoing.

However, members of the panel also pointed to limited institutional capacity, poor coordination, inadequate access to information and lack of political will as major obstacles to effective anti-corruption efforts.

The panel also described as embarrassing that Nigeria still lacked a dedicated whistleblower protection law, while countries including Ghana, Liberia and Senegal have established legal frameworks for protecting whistleblowers.

It noted that a Whistleblower Protection Bill was already before the National Assembly and called for action to turn it into law.

The panel also examined the role of beneficial ownership information in tracing assets hidden through companies.

The CSOs said amendments to company legislation and the introduction of the Beneficial Ownership Register and open ownership databases had helped “lift the corporate veil” that previously allowed people to hide behind companies.

However, they noted that complex and multi-layered offshore structures continue to make it difficult for investigators to identify the real owners of assets.

The panel identified real estate as a major area of concern, as stolen funds can be channelled into properties through shell companies, making it difficult to identify the true owners.

It urged investigators to look beyond names on property and corporate documents to establish who ultimately controls or benefits from assets.

The CSOs also called for thorough investigations before allegations are referred to anti-corruption agencies, noting that open-source information can provide leads but must be verified through physical checks, expert assessment and proper documentation.

They urged investigators to establish how funds were released and what the government actually spent, while better budget knowledge among citizens could reduce misinformation about public expenditure.

At the end of the session, they proposed a unified system that would bring relevant ownership information together and make it easier to identify people behind companies and trace hidden wealth.

They also called for closer cooperation between the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and anti-corruption agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to compare records and identify possible discrepancies.

Asset tracing, recovery challenges

Another panel examined the challenges faced by institutions involved in tracing and recovering illicit assets.

The panel included Gazakole Magaji, Acting Director, Asset and Liabilities Declaration Department, Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB); and Olakunle Akinsola, Assistant Director and Head, (Asset Management Division), ICPC.

Others are Odokara Paul, Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ); and Kush Amin, Legal Adviser, PPLAAF.

The panel identified access to information as one of the major difficulties in tracing illicit assets.

It noted that anti-corruption investigators often require information held by banks, corporate registries, government institutions and foreign authorities before they can establish the ownership, movement or source of assets.

The situation becomes more difficult when assets are moved across jurisdictions, particularly where foreign banks or institutions delay responses to requests for information or fail to respond, according to the agencies and commissions.

The panel members stressed the importance of access to reliable beneficial ownership information and stronger links between databases and institutions holding relevant information.

They also identified evidence gathering as a critical part of the asset recovery process.

They advocated stronger coordination between anti-corruption agencies so that information available to one institution can be used to support investigations by another.

The panel also discussed the use of international platforms, including the UN Office on Drugs and Crime-backed GLOBE platform, to facilitate secure information sharing and cooperation across jurisdictions.

Shift from arrest, prosecution to asset recovery

The keynote speaker, Abdullahi Shehu, a former Director-General of the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), called for a stronger focus on preventing corruption, tracing illicit assets and recovering the proceeds of corruption rather than concentrating mainly on arrests and prosecutions.

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Mr Shehu, a professor of criminology and security studies, said effective anti-corruption actions require a combination of laws, policies and institutional measures to prevent, detect and punish corruption, while stressing that prevention should remain a priority because it reduces the cost and effort required for enforcement.

He recommended 12 priorities for strengthening Nigeria’s anti-corruption and asset recovery framework, including greater independence for anti-corruption agencies, full implementation of the Proceeds of Crime Act ( POCA) , intelligence-led asset tracing, stronger beneficial ownership systems and improved coordination among agencies.

He also called for stronger international cooperation, transparent management of recovered assets, faster court proceedings, improved public procurement controls, protection for whistleblowers and witnesses, and increased capacity and professionalism among anti-corruption personnel.

On beneficial ownership, Mr Shehu said Nigeria must improve its systems for determining who ultimately owns or controls assets, noting that existing databases are fragmented and, in some cases, unreliable or inaccessible.

He also stressed the need for stronger cooperation among agencies, arguing that anti-corruption institutions must stop operating as separate entities.

He stressed that civil society organisations and the media also have important roles in monitoring public expenditure, investigating corruption, advocating legal reforms, tracking recovered assets and demanding accountability.

He also urged them to use the Freedom of Information Act to obtain information on government contracts, budgets, procurement, revenue collection and other public records, while pursuing legal action where institutions fail to provide information.

He specifically urged continued advocacy for a Whistleblower Protection Act and stronger mechanisms for anonymous reporting and witness protection, reinforcing concerns raised by the earlier panels about retaliation against people who expose corruption.

On recovered assets, Mr Shehu said recovery should be treated as a public-interest issue because the assets ultimately belong to citizens who suffered from the corruption that produced them.

He warned that recovering money only to return it to systems where it could be stolen again defeats the purpose of recovery.

He therefore urged citizens to take responsibility for governance and elections, because “A nation cannot defeat corruption if corruption decides who leads it.”

Other officials who attended the event included CCB Chairperson Abdullahi Bello and EFCC Chairperson Ola Olukoyede, who was represented by Adejoke Liman, a Commander of the EFCC and Acting Director of the Department of Policy, Planning, Research and Statistics.

The ICPC chairperson was represented by George Lawal, Acting Director of the Proceeds of Crime and Management Directorate of the commission.

Nigeria’s whistleblowing policy, proposed law

Nigeria’s Whistleblowing Policy was introduced in December 2016 under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to encourage citizens to report financial crimes, misappropriation of public funds and other wrongdoing.

The Senate passed the Public Interest Disclosure and Complaints (Enactment) Bill, 2022, also known as the Whistle Blower Bill, in March 2022.

The National Assembly later listed the Whistle Blowers Bill, 2023 (SB. 286), but records do not establish that the 2023 bill became law or was transmitted to the President for assent.