WHISTLEBLOWING: DRAFT PROTECTED DISCLOSURES BILL RELEASED FOR COMMENT

WHISTLEBLOWING: DRAFT PROTECTED DISCLOSURES BILL RELEASED FOR COMMENT

• 09 April 2026
• Justice & Constitutional Development
• SA Legal Academy

The Department of Justice & Constitutional Development has called for input by 14 May 2026 on a draft Protected Disclosures Bill among other things intended to ‘ensure that no discloser suffers harm for coming forward’. To that end, the draft Bill seeks to prohibit ‘occupational detriment or any form of retaliation’ – requiring the affected employer or other relevant party concerned ‘to prove that any action taken was not linked to the disclosure’. This is according to a media statement issued following a briefing on the draft Bill by Justice & Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi.

The statement also refers to provisions:

• introducing ‘mechanisms to protect the confidentiality of disclosures and disclosers’
• enabling ‘access to witness protection and legal assistance, ensuring a comprehensive support system for disclosers’
• restricting access to information by requiring:
  • court proceedings to be conducted in camera, and
  • the redaction of identifying details in legal processes
• introducing a complaints mechanism for dealing with improperly handled disclosures
• criminalising:
  • any breach of confidentiality
  • the suppression or concealment of evidence during an investigation
  • the unlawful disclosure of information or the identity of a discloser, and
  • subjecting a discloser to occupational detriment or detrimental action
• introducing strict disclosure-processing timelines and accountability procedures, and
• introducing ‘the possibility of financial awards in certain cases where disclosures lead to successful enforcement outcomes’.

In addition, a press release on two recent Cabinet meetings at which the draft Bill was approved refers to:

• a broader definition of ‘whistleblower’ to include ‘contractors, consultants, and members of the public’, as well as
• the introduction of ‘clear procedures for confidential disclosures’.

The draft Bill’s development was informed by the findings of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture (the Zondo Commission), as well as National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council recommendations.

The proposed new piece of legislation should not be confused with ActionSA MP Malebo Kobe’s recently tabled Public Procurement Amendment Bill – on which SA Legal Academy has already reported. Among other things, Kobe’s Bill provides for the introduction of ‘financial incentives … for whistleblowers whose disclosures result in the recovery of assets by the state’ in the context of the yet-to-be commenced 2024 Public Procurement Act.

• draft Bill
• ministerial media statement
• Cabinet media statement
• SA Legal Academy report on ActionSA Bill

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

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