Why you should blow the whistle

Why you should blow
the whistle
 
‘If you sniff
unprofessional conduct, behaviour or fraud, around you, what should you do? “Reach
out for the whistle and blow it!”
 
Blowing the whistle
on fraud or any irregularity encourages moral responsibility and helps eradicate
misconduct or bad habits.
Silence or inaction
in the face of fraud or irregularities has a price that may be too high to pay
in the long run, hence the need to always blow the whistle when the need
arises.
 
There are several
reasons why you should whistle blow in the face of fraud or irregularities.
These include; the need to fight fraud and fraudulent activities, reduce the
risk of harm to staff and the organization, as well as promote good
organisational governance.
 
Whistle blowing is also a confidential means
of exposing fraud, and compels investigation into any allegation to keep the
organization profitable.
 
Whistle blowers are
well protected and rewarded by the organisation because of their importance to
the survival of the system.
 
Seven
things that may discourage individuals or staff from Whistle blowing:
 
“It is only a suspicion;
I do not have evidence.” Blow the whistle anyway. It will be investigated and
if nothing is found, no harm is done.
“It is not my
problem. It will ultimately be your problem if the bank or organisation suffers
financial loss that leads to rationalization of staff.”
“I do not want to
be a snitch” No, you are not; you are only a dedicated employee concerned about
the bank’s or organisation’s common goal and future; a good citizen working
towards a better society.
 
“Nothing will be
done about it.” No, something definite is done about every whistle blowing
case. Reported cases are investigated, recommendations implemented, offenders
sanctioned in line with policy and lessons learned internalized. The whistle
blower informed about the outcome and rewarded, if the case is substantiated.
 
“It will only cause
trouble.” Of course, it will – for the fraudsters and their accomplices.  
 
“What if I am
wrong?” Not to worry, you will not be penalised for it. It is better to err on
the side of caution than to keep quiet.
 
“What if I am
spotted?” A whistle blowers’ identity will be protected. 
 
However, a whistle
blower is encouraged to maintain confidentiality also. Do not blow a whistle
and then blow your cover by spreading the news that you are the one that blew
the whistle.
 
There have been instances
where a whistle blower tries to take credit for reporting a case, or behaves in
a way that gives him or her away in the office as the blower.
 
Here are some of
the things that you can blow a whistle on;
Frauds and forgeries of any kind, fraudulent intentions, activities,
actions or inactions
, unprofessional behaviors, example cheating, immoral relationships,
connivance, among others, irregularity of any type; e.g.: mode of
employment,
benefit administration, i
ntentional
(even unintentional) policy violation as well as
collusion with syndicates, customers and other third
parties to defraud the bank.

 

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