Bill seeks to protect anti-graft whistleblowers

President of the Tanganyika Law Society (TLS) Charles Rwechungura       

By Bernard James and Alawi Masare The Citizen Reporters

In Summary

The same protection will also cover those revealing acts of ommission or commision on environmental degradation and threats to public health, according to the proposed law

Dar es Salaam/Dodoma. Individuals exposing corruption and abuse of office will now be protected and rewarded under a proposed new law that would inject fresh impetus in the fight against the vice in the country.

The same protection will also cover those revealing acts of ommission or commision on environmental degradation and threats to public health.

The government is moving to enact the law to insulate the whistleblowers from victimisation in a Bill tabled in Parliament yesterday for the first reading. It will now be sent to the public and other stakeholders for discussion before the final enactment.

The tabling of the Whistleblower and Witness Protection Bill would be seen in light of growing concern that the corruption cancer was eating into the heart of the nation, with the country experiencing scandal after the other over the years, with efforts to tame the problem not yielding quick results.

Tanzania has consistently dropped over the years in the global corruption index, with the latest mega scandal in the Sh320 billion Tegeta escrow account saga subjecting the government to a budget financing crisis when donors withdheld funding to push for an investigation and punishment of the culprits.

Anti-corruption and public rights activists yesterday positively greeted the move to enact a specific law to encourage the public to expose corruption, saying the Bill was a milestone in enhancing good governance and transparency.

If the Bill sails through in Parliament, it will offset hurdles and fears that Tanzanians who wanted to report on organised crime, corruption, unethical conduct and illegal and dangerous activities encountered in the past.

Such was the case of the former Bank of Tanzania (BoT) employee who was fired from his job a few years ago for playing a part in the revelation of the bank’s twin-towers building scandal, in which billions of shillings were lost when the contract was grossly multipied.

The Bill proposes to enact the law with a view to putting in place a mechanism for the protection, rewarding and compensating whistleblowers and witnesses.

Under the Bill, whistleblowers are allowed to disclose the wrongdoing by writing, sign language or orally and in case their life, property or jobs are endangered, the government will protect them against the threats.

If any person divulges any information relating to the identity of the whistleblower, the law says they commit an offence and shall be liable to at least three-year imprisonment or a minimum fine of Sh5 million or both. And for the authority that will ignore the information disclosed, the Bill states; “Any competent authority who fails to take an action in relation to the wrongdoing reported by a whistleblower and as a result of that failure he occasions loss to a public institution, commits an offence and shall, upon conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than 18 months or to a fine of not less than Sh3 million or to both.”

However, rumour mongers risk being jailed for at least one year or Sh1 million fine or both. The Bill punishes both disclosing wrong information and telling the suspect about the disclosed information.

The Bill comes just a month after the Parliament enacted the controversial Cybercrime Law which criminalises data espionage, including possession of computer data protected against unauthorised access without permission. Activists strongly opposed this provision noting it did not augur well with protection of whistleblowers.

Under the Cybercrime Law, a person who obtains computer data protected against unauthorised access without permission may face up to five years in prison. Those against it argued it was meant to clump down on the growing use of internet and social media to leak state secrets, largely underhand dealings that feed corrupt cartels.

But now under the whistleblowers Bill, things may change for the better. It gives amnesty to any person who may make a public interest disclosure to the authority if he has, among other things, reasonable belief of misappropriation or mismanagement of public resources, degradation of environment, commission of crime or health or safety of an individual or community is or likely to be endangered.

The Bill has however, exempted from disclosure information that is likely to affect the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of the United Republic of Tanzania.

Individuals will also not be required or authorised to give information affecting, among other things, the security of the state, friendly relations with a foreign state and public order.

Those qualifying for protection are whistleblowers who give information in good faith; with a reasonable cause to believe that the information they give or allegation of wrongdoing they level is substantially valid.

And the protection may only come if there is sufficient fear or belief formally expressed by the whistleblower or information gathered.

Circumstances that may attract the protection, include a reasonable fear that the whistleblower may be subjected to dismissal, suspension, harassment, discrimination or intimidation by his employers.

An individual may also qualify for protection if his life or property is endangered as the result of the disclosure.

The proposed law also empowers authorities to transfer to another employment or relocate a whistleblower to another place of residence.

For the purposes of promoting and facilitating reporting of wrongdoing, the law will direct responsible ministers to set procedures to reward and compensate whistleblowers.

Employers alerted