TI calls for protection to whistleblowers, wants Right to Information Act improved
JournalismPakistan.com | Published: 3 March 2015
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Transparency International Pakistan highlights the need for enhancements to the Right to Information Act. The organization's research emphasizes the importance of protecting whistleblowers to combat corruption effectively.Summary
ISLAMABAD: Transparency International Pakistan has called for improvement to the Right to Information Act and providing protection to whistleblowers.
Akber Panjwani, project coordinator at the TI, told JournalismPakistan that his organization conducted a two-year research evaluating the key institutions of governance which are responsible for the progress of integrity and eliminating corruption from the country.
The findings of the research stress the importance of the Right to Information and whistleblower protection laws as presence of these oversight elements will help promote rule of law in Pakistan, Panjwani said.
The right to information law has been enacted at the federal level and in the provinces of Sindh, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but there is still room for improvement, he said.
“The act is silent on providing legal, administrative and employment-related protection to whistleblowers for disclosing corruption. It transmits the perception that by doing so the government is least interested to reduce corruption,” he said.
Panjwani said that risk of corruption significantly increases in situations where the reporting of malpractice is not sheltered. “The protection of whistleblower is crucial to encourage the reporting of misconduct, fraud, and corruption,” he said.
KEY POINTS:
- TI calls for improvements to the Right to Information Act.
- Whistleblower protection is crucial for reporting misconduct.
- Research findings point to the need for legal protections for whistleblowers.
- Corruption risks increase in the absence of oversight.
- Strengthening the Act can help promote the rule of law in Pakistan.
