By Joy Baba-Yesufu
The Coalition for Whistleblower Protection and Press Freedom (CWPPF) has called on the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr. Musa Aliyu Adamu, SAN, to urgently intervene in what it describes as the “unlawful detention and brutalisation” of a whistleblower, Mubarak Bello, by the Katsina State Police Command.
Bello, who reportedly exposed an alleged payment fraud within the command, was arrested by a police patrol team on September 13, 2025, and has remained in detention. The Coalition alleges that he is facing “severe harassment, intimidation, and physical torture” under trumped-up charges of unlawful possession of a firearm and impersonation.
The CWPPF, a network of 30 civil society and media organisations, said its findings suggest that Bello’s ordeal is a direct reprisal for his whistleblowing activities, particularly his petition to anti-corruption agencies, including the ICPC, concerning irregularities in police personnel salary payments in Katsina State.
“If no critical oversight institution of the state intervenes, the whistleblower might die from the injuries inflicted on him by elements within the police,” the Coalition warned in a statement.
The group urged the ICPC to take immediate steps to ensure Bello’s protection and release, citing three major grounds for action.
First, the Coalition said the ICPC had already investigated Bello’s petition and found a prima facie case of misconduct against some officers in the Katsina command. According to CWPPF, the Commission had formally requested the Inspector-General of Police to release the implicated officers for interrogation, a request that has allegedly gone unanswered.
Second, it noted that the ICPC, as co-custodian of the Federal Government’s Whistleblowing Policy under the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit (PICA), is legally obliged to ensure protection for whistleblowers under Section 12 of the policy, which prohibits reprisals.
Third, the Coalition referenced Nigeria’s obligations under Article 33 of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), which compels signatory states to protect individuals who report corruption.
“The Nigeria Police Force, which ought to serve as a rehabilitative institution, has instead continued to act as a retaliatory agent against whistleblowers,” the CWPPF stated. “This uncivilised and anti-democratic behaviour must stop.”
