Whistle-Blowers Act doesn’t cover journalists who expose corruption on the airwaves – GII

The Executive Director of the Ghana Integrity Initiative and Board Chairman of the Office of the Special Prosecutor, Linda Ofori Kwarfo, has asked journalists to use the right procedure spelt out in the law to expose corruption.

This, she explained, will enable journalists to be covered and protected by the Whistle-Blowers Act which was promulgated in 2006 if need be.

The Act is to empower citizens to report corruption without being afraid of any form of victimisation and intimidation.

Ms Kwarfo noted at a capacity-building workshop for business journalists on Business Integrity Reporting over the weekend that some journalists have gained notoriety for announcing corrupt acts on radio.

She said although it is not wrong to speak out in the media on corruption within the society, in order to be fully protected under the Act, these journalists must follow the right procedures stipulated in the Act and make the graft known to the agencies responsible for dealing with them.

“You cannot sit on the radio and expose corruption and expect to be covered by the Whistle-Blowers Act,” she said, adding: “Use the right channel as stated in the Act to enable you to be covered by the same Act.”

Ms Kwarfo also urged the public to be bold and report corruption using appropriate channels.

Outlining some steps taken to deal with corruption in the country, Ms Kwarfo stated that Ghana has introduced the 10-year National Anti?Corruption Action Plan (NACAP) to enable the state to deal drastically with the graft.