Whistleblowing and white collar crime

Clause 19 of Trinidad and Tobago’s Whistleblower Protection Bill, 2018, would grant a whistleblower, who makes a protected disclosure, immunity from criminal, civil and disciplinary proceedings and Clause 25 would prohibit the obstruction of whistleblowing reporting personnel in the performance of their duties. This bill should have been implemented a long, long time ago. Corruption in Trinidad and Tobago is at an all-time high, but perpetrators of white collar crime seem to be succeeding in evading the law and focus being placed, mostly, on street crimes. 

We are well aware of the serious harm that can be done to societies when white collar crimes go unpunished. They only lead to more criminality.  Whistleblowers’ tips can lead to government penalties in the millions of dollars, and with good reason. Whistleblower’s information is important and can result in criminal charges against wrongdoers and, in due course, changes in policy. Most of the corporate fraud is reported through tips and whistleblowers divest valuable information that brings rewards to themselves and punishes fraudsters. A staggeringly high number of all tips come from whistleblowers who have seen or experienced fraud in the workplace or outside of the workplace. 

This proves that whistleblower tips are a viable means of getting the job done and effectively detecting corporate fraud in the twin isle and whistleblower laws should be put in place as it is a good and rewarding practice. 

These Whistleblower Protection Bill will also protect whistleblowers against retaliation from employers, such as termination of employment, suspension, demotion, harassment, or any form of discrimination in the terms and conditions of employment.

Whistleblower laws should also provide rewards and protections for those who choose to blow the whistle on fraud against the government and any fraud committed by the government on its citizens. Whistleblower attorneys should have resources via anonymous tip lines to help protect those who report fraud against the government. By choosing the right whistleblower attorney, whistleblowers can further protect themselves from retaliation and can rest assured that their claim is brought in the safest and most effective manner possible.

We should all know that fraud costs taxpayers millions of dollars annually. When they report fraud, whistleblowers do a service for everyone, not just those harmed by, for example, the healthcare fraud or kickbacks, they’ve witnessed. 

Corruption rank in Trinidad and Tobago increased to 86 in 2020 from 85 in 2019. This is an indication of how vital it is for wrongdoing to be reported. Whistleblowers help justice to reach places it wouldn’t otherwise. Whistleblowers often use their unique abilities and perspective to ferret out fraud and their tips are important. Becoming a whistleblower is a civic duty and helps right serious wrongs.

Whistleblowers help shed light on corruption that would otherwise go untouched, and when they choose to report fraud, they not only stand up for themselves against the fraudster but also perform a public service for most of us, because we all pay a price for fraud.

Fraud is serious. In the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, whistleblowers have uncovered schemes that illegally increase the price of medicine for patient care, including unlawful billing for procedures or supplies. In defense contracting, false claims can take many forms, including supplying the government with defective parts or intentional inflation of prices on government contracts or other schemes. Defense and construction fraud against the government can include lack of quality control, or failure to property test for defects or flaws in security. For all these reasons we on the twin isle should support  the Whistleblower Protection Bill. 

Subrina Hall-Azih is a Trinidadian Educator residing in New York.