1.
The Whistle-blower Policy is not a Law of the National Assembly. The Whistle Blower Protection Bill was proposed at the National Assembly in the past, however the Bill only scaled the second reading in October 2016. You can read all about how Laws are made at the National Assembly and the process for turning a Bill into an Act here.
2.
The Whistle Blower Policy was approved by the Federal Executive Council in December 2016. The policy was created by the Federal Ministry of Finance for whistle-blowers.
3.
The policy provides that if the government is able to recover stolen or concealed assets through information provided by a whistle-blower, then he/she may be entitled to between 2.5%-5.0% of amount recovered.
4.
To qualify for the reward, the whistle-blower must provide the Government with information it does not already have and could not otherwise obtain from any other publicly available source to the Government. The actual recovery must also be because the information provided by the whistle-blower.
5.
The Whistle blower Policy defines a ‘whistle blower’ in its FAQs as –a person who voluntarily discloses to the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Federal Ministry of Finance, a possible misconduct or violation that has occurred, is ongoing, or is about to occur with specific concerns which are in the public interest.
6.
The policy is really is for informants, people who are aware of the crime, therefore a conspirator or accomplice will technically not be classed as a whistle-blower and might be unable to take the benefit of the policy.
7.
The policy does not provide ANY immunity from civil or criminal prosecution. What this means is that if during the investigation some of the evidence links a whistle-blower to partaking in the act of corruption or a related incident, the whistle-blower would not be immune from criminal prosecution. He/she could technically be charged for a crime that I helped blow the whistle on.
Interested in reading the policy? Check it out here – Nigeria’s Whistleblower Policy
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We hope you have found this information helpful. Please note that this information is provided for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be legal advice. No lawyer-client relationship is formed nor should any such relationship be implied. This answer is not intended to substitute for the advice of a qualified lawyer. If you require legal advice, please consult with a qualified lawyer.