Concerning
Employment Protection of Public
Sector Whistleblowers[1]
ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
We,
Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Chairman
of the Financial Audit Authority,
After perusal of:
Law No. (4) of 2018 Establishing the Financial Audit
Authority and its amendments; and
Decree No. (14) of 2018 Appointing the Chairman of the
Financial Audit Authority,
Do
hereby issue this Resolution.
The following words and expressions, wherever mentioned in this
Resolution, will have the meaning indicated opposite each of them unless the
context implies otherwise:
|
Emirate: |
The Emirate of Dubai. |
|
Law: |
Law No. (4) of 2018 Establishing the Financial Audit
Authority and its amendments. |
|
FAA: |
The Financial Audit Authority. |
|
Chairman: |
The chairman of the FAA. |
|
Director General: |
The director general of the FAA. |
|
Auditee: |
Any entity that is subject to audit by the FAA under
the Law. |
|
Violation: |
Any of the financial or administrative violations
stipulated in the Law. |
|
Administrative Investigation: |
The process conducted by the FAA to investigate a
Violation attributed to an Employee, by means of interviewing the Employee and
confronting him with the allegations, with the aim of gathering material
evidence to determine whether the alleged Violation has been committed. |
|
Employee: |
A male or female public sector employee who occupies
a budgeted post in an Auditee. |
|
Investigator: |
An Employee of the FAA who, by virtue of his
position, is responsible for conducting Administrative Investigations into
Violations. |
|
Whistleblower: |
An Employee who cooperates with the FAA by reporting
any Violation or providing formal statements related thereto. |
|
Protection: |
The employment protection afforded to Whistleblowers
in accordance with the provisions of this Resolution. |
The
provisions of this Resolution
apply to:
1.
Whistleblowers whose reports or
statements in connection with committed Violations, falling within the FAA’s
jurisdiction under the Law, are accepted by the FAA; and
2.
Employees who are summoned to
provide statements during Administrative Investigations into
Violations.
This
Resolution aims to:
1.
protect Public Funds and uphold the Emirate’s
reputation for financial and economic integrity by enabling Employees to report
Violations and provide statements during Administrative Investigations
conducted by the FAA, without being subjected to any form of pressure, thereby
facilitating the detection of Violations;
2.
protect the employment status of
Whistleblowers from any detriment resulting from their reports or statements
made during the Administrative Investigations conducted by the FAA; and
3.
regulate the procedures and
conditions for submitting Protection applications by Employees
in respect of the reports they file with the FAA, and establish the legal and
procedural frameworks aimed at encouraging Employees to report Violations
committed within Auditees.
a.
Violation
reports and Protection applications must be personally submitted by the
Whistleblower through the FAA’s official website, on the form prescribed by the
FAA for this purpose. A Protection application must include the following:
1.
the Whistleblower’s name,
designation, address, nationality, and employer;
2.
the name of the Auditee by which the
Whistleblower is employed;
3.
a general report outlining the facts
of the alleged Violation and the relevant circumstances, including the names of
the Employees to whom the Violation is attributed and any matters that may
affect the Whistleblower’s employment status. The report must be clear, must
not contain codes or ambiguous references, and must not be intended to spread
rumours or make false accusations; and
4.
any documents and evidence available
to the Whistleblower substantiating the alleged Violation committed within the
Auditee.
b.
Notwithstanding
the provisions of paragraph (a) of this Article, the FAA may accept the
Violation report and Protection application if submitted in writing by the
Whistleblower in person at the FAA offices. The FAA may, at its discretion,
register the report and the application in accordance with the procedures,
conditions, and rules stipulated in this Resolution.
a.
The
Violation
reports submitted to the FAA will be treated as confidential. Under no
circumstances may Employees of the FAA disclose, circulate, or otherwise
divulge any data or information contained in such reports.
b.
When
conducting an Administrative Investigation, the Investigator must demonstrate the
requisite skills appropriate to the nature of the investigation and must comply
with the rules governing investigations involving a Whistleblower. The
Investigator must also strictly adhere to the principle of confidentiality to
ensure that the Whistleblower suffers no detriment whatsoever.
a. In registering
Violation reports and Protection applications, the following procedures will
apply:
1.
The
FAA
will consider the Violation report and Protection application submitted by a
Whistleblower, assess the detriment to the Whistleblower’s employment status that
may arise from reporting the Violation, determine whether the report falls
within the FAA’s jurisdiction, and verify that the matter has not already been
adjudicated or determined by a competent judicial authority.
2.
Where it is established to the FAA
that the Violation report and Protection application relate to an ongoing
Administrative Investigation conducted by the FAA, the FAA may consolidate the
report with the ongoing procedures.
3.
Where the FAA decides, for any
reason whatsoever, not to proceed with the Administrative Investigation of the
Violation report, both the report and the Protection application
will be archived and recorded in the Register of Archived or Dismissed
Applications referred to in sub-paragraph (b)(2) of this Article, together with
a statement of the grounds for the archiving or dismissal.
4.
Where
it is established
to the FAA that the report is valid, the Protection application will be
accepted and processed accordingly, and will be recorded in the Register of
Accepted Protection Applications referred to in sub-paragraph (b)(1) of this
Article.
b. The FAA will
establish the following two registers:
1. a Register
of Accepted Protection Applications, in which all accepted applications will be
recorded; and
2. a Register
of Archived or Dismissed Applications, in which all archived or dismissed applications
will be recorded.
c. The Director
General will, pursuant to a resolution he issues in this respect, determine the
format of both registers referred to in paragraph (b) of this Article and the
data to be included therein.
1.
non-disclosure of any information
relating to the identity or position of the Whistleblower, upon submission of
the Protection application;
2.
requesting the Auditee to refrain
from taking any action against the Employee Whistleblower in the event that he
discloses confidential information or data in the course of the Administrative
Investigation;
3.
ensuring that the Whistleblower is
not subjected to any discrimination or mistreatment at work as a result of
reporting the Violation;
4.
requesting the Auditee to revoke any
administrative decision or disciplinary action taken against the Whistleblower
for breach of the applicable disciplinary or human resources regulations as a
result of reporting the Violation, except where the report is proven to be
false or malicious, intended to harm or defame others through spreading
rumours, or discloses that the Whistleblower has committed an act that constitutes
a criminal offence under applicable legislation;
5.
requesting the Auditee to revoke any
administrative decision and cancel the disciplinary action taken against the
Whistleblower following the submission of the Violation report, where it is
established to the FAA that such a decision or action has caused a detriment to
the Whistleblower’s employment or professional status; and
6.
taking any other measures approved
by the Chairman upon the recommendation of the Director General as necessary to
ensure the Protection of the Whistleblower.
The FAA’s refusal to take any of the
Protection measures stipulated in Article (7) of this Resolution will not
preclude an Employee Whistleblower from submitting a grievance against any
decision or action taken against him by the Auditee in accordance with the
applicable legislation, on account of having reported or provided information
concerning any Violation.
The Director General may grant
Whistleblowers monetary or non-monetary incentive awards to encourage them to
provide substantive information leading to the exposure of
Violations, in accordance with the relevant conditions and rules prescribed by
the Chairman upon the recommendation of the Director General.
The Director General will issue the resolutions
required for the implementation of this Resolution.
This Resolution comes into force on the
day on which it is issued, and will be published in the Official Gazette.
Maktoum bin
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
First Deputy Ruler of Dubai
Chairman of the Financial Audit Authority
Issued in
Dubai on 8 May 2025
Corresponding to 10 Thu al-Qidah 1446 A.H.
©2025 The Supreme Legislation Committee in the
Emirate of Dubai
[1]Every effort has been made to produce an
accurate and complete English version of this legislation. However, for the purpose
of its interpretation and application, reference must be made to the original
Arabic text. In case of conflict, the Arabic text will prevail.