SERAP, others urge Fashola to protect whistleblower in works ministry

A coalition of civil society organisations including Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Human and Environmental Development Agenda, among others, on Monday urged the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, to take urgent steps to protect a whistleblower, Richard Oghenerhoro, who has come under intimidation for exposing employment scam in the ministry.

The CSOs made the call in a letter titled “Request for protection of whistleblower Richard Oghenerhoro,” dated August 15, 2022 and addressed to the minister.

The letter was jointly signed by the Coordinator, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, Chido Onumah, the Executive Director, Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development, Augustine Agbonsuremi; the Chairman, Human and Environmental Development Agenda, Olarewaju Suraj, and the Deputy Director of SERAP, Kolawole Oluwadare.

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They urged Fashola to ensure full protection for the whistleblower, reverse the punitive postings and other various acts of intimidation and assault against him by some senior staff in the ministry.

The letter read: “From our findings, we observed that his courageous act has elicited retaliation in form of punitive postings from the Appointment Unit where he uncovered the employment scam, to Open Registry and then a removal from the headquarters altogether to the Gwagwalada office as head of administration department.”

The CSOs noted that other than Oghenerhoro’s ill-advised redeployment, he has also been continually abused and threatened by some staff who were aggrieved by a gesture aimed at achieving good conduct.

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