Independent body proposed to protect whistle blowers

The Joint Select Committee of Parliament analyzing the Protected Disclosure Act which will enact the so-called "whistle blower" laws, on Wednesday agreed that an independent oversight body is required to carry out investigations when disclosures are made.

The proposed legislation seeks to encourage persons, especially those in the workplace to give information on criminal conduct.

Under the Act, the whistle blower makes the disclosure to an employer or a designated person within his or her entity, or 16 public officials.

However, Committee members argued that the information could be leaked back to the person being investigated, thus jeopardising the "whistle blower's" safety.

Some committee members have been calling for an independent body to hear disclosures and carry out the investigations.

The Joint Select Committee made it clear said the whistle blower should only make disclosures to one of the 16 named state officials or to an oversight body.

Committee member Clive Mullings put forward the argument.

“The position I think we ought to look at…with respect to the issue of having an entity, be it the office of the whistle blower or some other entity, can take on this responsibility. If you have an investigation that has to take place that may require the subpoena of documents and witnesses and possibly an entity that will be girded with these powers we would be able to have the legislation being given real effect,” Mr. Mullings said.

He tried to strengthen his argument pointing to the clause allowing the employer to whom the disclosure is made, to refuse to investigate the allegations.

The committee agreed that the employer should not have this much power.

“Chairman I believe that in operationalizing this legislation, the employer is the least likely person to make this legislation work. It brings too much attention to his organization, it brings embarrassment and there is the notion of scandal and once that is resurrected people go under cover,” said committee member, Phillip Paulwell.

The committee meets again Thursday to fine-tune the setting up of the oversight body.