BY COBHAM NSA, ABUJA – The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun said strict adherence to detailed procedures and avoidance of legal disputes are responsible for delayed payments under the Federal Government’s Whistle-blower Policy.
Adeosun said the procedures are not only meant to prevent abuse and legal contestation, but also to ensure adequate protection of the information providers.
The Minister spoke against the backdrop of claims that the Federal Government has refused to honour its payment commitment to the whistle-blower whose information exposed the massive funds stashed away in an Ikoyi apartment in Lagos State.
Mrs Adeosun explained that besides monthly payments of such commissions to whistle-blowers for security reasons, other “procedures include an application by the agency, who recovered the funds including evidence of the recovery, confirmation that there are no pending legal issues on the recovery, verification of the identity of the information provider, calculation of the amount payable and computation of relevant taxes.”
In a statement signed by her Special Adviser on Media, Oluyinka Akintunde, the Minister pledged Federal Government’s committed to pay in full all monies due to individuals, who responded to the policy and partnered with Government in the recovery efforts, and also most importantly have their identity protected.
Below is the full statement
Ikoyi recovery: Whistle-blower in Next Batch of Payment – Adeosun
- The attention of the Honourable Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has been drawn to media reports surrounding the payment to a whistleblower, who provided the tips that led to the recovery of funds stashed away in a property in Ikoyi, Lagos State.
- The Honourable Minister wishes to state unequivocally that the Federal Government has not withheld any fund due to any whistleblower. The Ministry has in place detailed procedures for processing payments due under the Whistleblower Policy. The procedures were designed to prevent abuse and legal disputes and to ensure protection of the information providers.
- These procedures include an application by the agency, who recovered the funds including evidence of the recovery, confirmation that there are no pending legal issues on the recovery, verification of the identity of the information provider, calculation of the amount payable and computation of relevant taxes.
- It must be stated also that payments are made in monthly batches to ensure control and to protect the identity of information providers. To date, over 20 of such persons have been paid. From available records, the payment due on Ikoyi is among those being processed in the November batch, which will be released within the current month.
- The Minister reiterates that the Whistle-blowing Policy of the Federal Government remains one of the current Administration’s successful initiatives and that the Government is fully committed to ensuring that all those, who responded to the policy and partnered with Government in the recovery efforts, are paid in full and most importantly have their identity protected.
- The Whistleblower Policy was introduced in December 2016 by the Federal Government as part of the initiatives to wage war against corruption.
Signed:
Oluyinka Akintunde
Special Adviser to the Honourable Minister of Finance
Federal Ministry of Finance
12th November, 2017
