RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Shoura Council, a top advisory council to the government, is studying proposals for protection of people who report financial crime, local media reported, following the government’s anti-corruption crackdown.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has launched an inquiry into graft that has resulted in the detention of a dozens of princes, senior officials and businessmen.
The Shoura Council does not have legislative powers, but it can propose laws to the king and the cabinet.
It said in a tweet on Monday that it had agreed on the “appropriateness of the draft proposal” for whistleblower protection for financial and administrative corruption.
The Arabic-language newspaper Al-Riyadh reported on Tuesday that the council had agreed to study two proposals on the matter that also included protection of eyewitnesses who report violations such as financial crime.
A top official said earlier this month that Saudi authorities have questioned 208 people in an anti-corruption investigation and estimate at least $100 billion has been stolen through graft.
“The Government of Saudi Arabia, under the leadership of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is working within a clear legal and institutional framework to maintain transparency and integrity in the market,” Attorney General Sheikh Saud Al Mojeb said in a statement on Nov. 9.