By Stanley Onyeka, Lagos
Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has called on the Federal Government to take urgent and concrete steps to strengthen legal and institutional protections for whistleblowers.
This is in recognition of their critical role in exposing corruption, human rights abuses and other wrongdoing, describing them as a cornerstone of transparency, accountability, and good governance.
This is contained in a statement issued in Lagos, to mark this year’s World Whistleblowers’ Day, which focuses on raising awareness about whistleblowing, combating corruption, and encouraging a positive culture of speaking up within organisations.
MRA stressed that whistleblowers serve the public interest by courageously disclosing information that would otherwise remain hidden, often at great personal risk.
In Nigeria, whistleblowers continue to operate in a climate of fear, retaliation, and legal uncertainty, which deters many others from coming forward with information about wrongdoing.
Programme Officer at MRA, Ayomide Eweje, was quoted as saying: “We note that the current whistleblower protection framework in Nigeria remains weak, fragmented, and largely ineffective.
“The Federal Government continues to threaten whistleblowers with prosecution despite the whistleblower protection provisions in Section 27(2) of the Freedom of Information Act.
“Besides, the Whistleblower Policy adopted by the Government in 2016 was not designed to provide protection for persons who risk everything to expose corruption, misconduct, human rights violations, threat to public safety, or other wrongdoing, but is merely aimed at assisting the government to recover looted public funds.”
In Nigeria, whistleblowers continue to operate in a climate of fear, retaliation, and legal uncertainty, which deters many others from coming forward with information about wrongdoing.
She noted that the absence of a comprehensive legal framework for the protection of whistleblowers has left them vulnerable to threats, harassment, job losses, and physical harm.
She added that successive governments in Nigeria have failed to acknowledge the immense value that whistleblowers bring to the society and the important role that they play in combating corruption and ensuring transparency and accountability.
Against this backdrop MRA said: “On this World Whistleblowers Day, we stand in solidarity with whistleblowers in Nigeria and around the world who have paid a high price for speaking out, particularly against powerful individuals in society.
“We reaffirm our commitment to advocating for their rights and working towards a society where exposing wrongdoing is not only protected but also celebrated as a courageous act of public service.”
The 2025 World Whistleblowers’ Day is themed: “Protecting the Truth-Tellers. This year’s campaign, “we’re all ears,” seeks to highlight the importance of whistleblowing and support those who speak up against wrongdoing.
