On April 1, 2019, White House Security Adviser Tricia Newbold revealed that there were serious violations in the administration of security permits against a number of US President Donald Trump’s staff. As reported by AFP and Sky News, the refusal of granting permission to access confidential documents is related to conflicts of interest, personal background, to involvement with other countries.
The case shows that Newbold’s role as a whistleblower is crucial in uncovering violations. Reporting from nejm.org, 90% of fraud cases in the health sector are reported with “qui-tam” actions, namely whistleblowers who report fraud cases directly to court. The existence of a whistleblower with the action “qui-tam”, means that reporting fraud cases could recover the company’s finances with a total of $ 9 billion from 1996 to 2005.
Whistleblower’s motivation
A large number of whistleblowers that report fraud cases stated that their action is motivated by a sense of responsibility in saving the integrity of the company. However, the risk received by the whistleblower is quite high. According to a study entitled “Whistleblowers’ Experiences in Litigation against Pharmaceutical Companies”, as many as 82% of whistleblowers from fraud cases experience retaliations, including being fired, pressured to resign, or transferred. Some certain cases also involved family members.
With this high level of risk, some companies offer financial incentives for whistleblowers who report fraud cases.
Incentives or protection?
According to research, financial incentives do not minimize the risk of whistleblowers from being subjected to retaliations. The results of the study suggest that companies should focus on the aspect of protection to whistleblowers by committing to implementing a whistleblowing policy that provides a sense of security and maintains the confidentiality of their identity.
Integrity Indonesia, as a company that has more than seventeen years of work experience in the field of compliance has extensive experience in providing whistleblowing services for clients from various business backgrounds. Through the Canary Whistleblowing System, Integrity Indonesia presents a combination of several reporting channels that are centralized on the website application, thereby increasing our client’s accessibility to reports, while still ensuring the anonymity of the reporter. Contact us for further information about the Canary Whistleblowing System.
Also Read:
Whistleblowing: 5 Measures Companies can take to Decrease the fear of Retaliation
A Whistleblowing System to Create Good Corporate Governance
The Whistleblowing System in Preventing Financial Statement Fraud
Writer: Aqilla Nasyia
