Act will help combat crime

By REBECCA KUKU
THE Whistleblower’s Act will help police combat crime and help in investigations, says Police Commissioner David Manning.
Comm Manning told The National yesterday that the act would see more people willing to come forward with information and at the same time allow police to guarantee by law protection for them.
“There are people out there who are victims of crime or know of crimes being committed and who want to assist police with information but unfortunately do not feel comfortable coming forward due to intimidation or threats,” he said.
“And out of concern for their safety and safety of their loved ones, so the act will play a big part in helping people to cooperate with us.”
Comm Manning said working out the mechanics of the how the act would work was still a process but he was encouraged by the Government’s efforts so far in passing the Bill in Parliament.
He said the Whistleblower’s Act was a significant way forward in combating crime and assisting police in their investigations when it came to investigating crimes.
“We will need to develop procedures on how best we can operationalise the bill into our day-to-day business.”
“It will require extensive training for the Whistleblower’s Bill itself within the constabulary, particularly with CID (Criminal Investigation, Division) the Fraud Squad and Major Crimes Unit.
Comm Manning said that no specialised unit would be set up for the Whistleblowers Act, however, they would need time to implement it into normal police operations.
He also said the Whistleblower’s Bill did not duplicate the role of the police but rather presented a greater collaborative front or mechanism to have better collaboration between state agencies that fell under the social and law and order sector.
“At the end of the day, the constabulary is a prominent fixture in the fight against corruption, so in any national strategy in addressing corruption the constabulary will always be there, enforcing the law.
“The bill helps us upgrade to another higher level of fighting against corruption in the country, and we are very much part of the whole process,” he said.
Comm Manning said the Whistleblower’s Act will also help to give them a greater capacity to deal with big corruption cases.
He also thanked the Government for passing the Whistleblower’s Bill.