Participants after the official launch of the digital whistleblower portal
The Centre for Public Interest Law (CEPIL), a non-partisan, not-for-profit and Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) with the primary aim of making the pursuit of justice accessible and affordable to poor and marginalised communities and individuals, with support from OXFAM Ghana, has launched a digital whistleblower portal as a cornerstone for democratic governance and social justice.
The portal, an accessible, secure, and user-friendly interface, is an innovation designed to empower citizens, particularly underserved populations, to report abuses safely and seek legal support in the face of obstacles such as distance, stigma, fear of retaliation, disability and limited access to legal services.
Speaking on the theme: “Strengthening Access to Justice Through Digital Accountability Mechanisms” at the official launch of the portal in Goaso in the Ahafo Region, the Executive Director of CEPIL, Augustine Niber, indicated that the objective of the digital platform is to promote rule of law, accountability and human rights protection to foster public awareness on whistleblower protection laws, strengthen civic engagement, and promote inclusive legal redress mechanisms in Ghana’s justice architecture.
“We have come to the realisation that there have always been violations along this value chain, but people have been finding it difficult to report these violations as a result of some barriers that have occasioned so one of the barriers we have noted is the fact that they are not able to access these institutions and so today we have launched a portal and the portal is to facilitate reporting of violation of rights of people… for us to be able to respond and seek redress from the right institutions,” he said.
Augustine Niber gave the assurance that with the launch of the portal, CEPIL will significantly strengthen its advocacy and reporting efforts on human rights violations since the portal will serve as a vital tool for documenting incidents of abuse, marginalisation, and injustice across the country.
He stressed that CEPIL will not only highlight these violations but will also proactively follow up on each case reported through the portal, working diligently to engage the appropriate state institutions, regulatory bodies, and legal mechanisms to seek justice and redress for the victims as part of CEPIL’s broader mission.
Representatives from the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Legal Aid Ghana, Lands Commission, Environmental Protection Agency, civil society organisations, persons living with disability, traditional authorities, among others, who attended the event were taken through the appropriate use of the portal.
