Bar Council president Christopher Leong says incentives can be offered to whistleblowers in order to encourage more people to come forward.

However, Leong said, it was up to the particular enforcement agency to do so.

"According to Section 26 of the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010, the enforcement agency may order such rewards (to be given).

"And it is up to the enforcement agency to come out with such rewards," he said.

Leong was speaking at a forum titled "Whistleblowing in Malaysia:Its nature, the law, protection and challenges" in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

A representati ve from Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung (GPMS), Jais Abdul Karim ( right ) had earlier asked whether incentives would be given to whistleblowers.

"I think giving incentives will encourage people to come out.

"Since whistleblowing can save millions of ringgit, I don't see why incentives should not be given," Jais said.

Meanwhile, Leong  admitted that there were many challenges in whistleblowing.

“Whistleblowing does not come naturally to most people as we have been taught since young to not be a snitch and not to tell tales.

“Also, it is difficult to combat corruption and serious crimes if you do not get inside information."

To encourage whistleblowing, Leong gave several proposals for the reform of the Act, which came into force on Dec 15 2010.

Whistleblowers, he added, should be allowed to disclose information to third parties.

'Law must protect whistleblower'

“This is because, most of the time, people consult their confidants first. So disclosure should be through other means apart from via an enforcement agency only.

“Also, the law should be amended to have a whistleblower protection independent statutory body like the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) which will evaluate the information and decide whether or not to give protection.”

Leong explained that the Act, in other countries like Australia, is designed to protect the whistleblower and not designed to protect or suppress the information.

Earlier, the deputy head of the Appellate and Trial Division of the Attorney-General’s Chambers Anthony Kevin Morais (left) said whistleblowers who go to the press or social media with the information cannot expect protection from the Act.

“The Act only protects those who comply with the parameters of the law,” Morais said, citing the case of National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower Edward Snowden.

He further explained that there was no problem for the mere disclosure to a third party, as long as the information is then relayed to the necessary enforcement agency.

Leong believes that a dedicated department or unit within a particular enforcement agency must be available for whistleblowers.

“When I have an explosive information, whose door do I knock on at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC)?

"I can't just go to the police station and tell them I’m a whistleblower, right?

'Extend immunity from secrecy laws'

Leong also proposed that the Act be amended to extend immunity to whistleblowers who risk violating the Official Secrets Act (OSA), Banking and Financial Institutions Act (Bafia) or other secrecy laws to expose graft.

He said the Whistleblower Protection Act must also have a provision for whistleblowers to be updated constantly on the status of the investigation.

“This is to minimise their anxiety that they are not taken seriously," Leong said.

However, Morais said most whistleblowers do not want constant updating.

“Also, when we constantly give them updates, this can jeopardise the investigation.

“The whistleblower may tell a third person, and things will only blow up,” Morais said.