(NEW YORK) MintPress — “Heads must roll,” was the response of Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) after reading an internal Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DoD OIG) report on the handling of whistleblowers in the military.
The May 2011 assessment, which was recently obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), a nonprofit watchdog group, showed that investigators made questionable calls in more than half of a set of military whistleblower reprisal cases.
“This devastating report proves one of our worst fears – that military whistleblowers have systematically been getting a raw deal,” said POGO executive director Danielle Brian.
The report examined decisions made by the Directorate of Military Reprisal Investigations (MRI) in 156 cases closed in 2010. MRI was created to help those whose complaints of wrongdoing are ignored after hearings and legislation in the 1990s that highlighted the military’s practice of seeking mental health evaluations for whistleblowers in order to damage their careers.
According to an October 2011 memo by the Defense Department’s deputy inspector general Marguerite C. Garrison, the MRI’s work is “essential to preventing fraud and abuse, and to promoting economy and efficiency” in the $677 billion national defense budget.
Outcome of the review
A three-person of veteran investigators at the Pentagon divided the cases into three categories — declinations, preliminary inquiries and full investigations — depending on the stage at which MRI declined further investigation of the complaint or decided the allegation was not substantiated.
The team did not agree with MRI’s decision in 65 percent of the cases which it declined to investigate, 45.5 percent of the 88 preliminary inquiries and 44.5 percent of the full investigations.
The report concluded that MRI consistently overlooked evidence of serious punishment of those who had complained, including threatened or actual discharges, demotions, firings, prosecutions and mental health referrals. Some of the other whistleblowers had alleged discrimination, travel violations and “criminality.”
“This report helps to confirm what everyone knew in practice – that the IG has not respected the law’s mandate,” said Tom Devine, legal director for the Government, a nonprofit advocacy group that has represented Pentagon employees in whistleblowing-related lawsuits.
He maintains the IG’s office has often been “a Trojan Horse ” whose agents are “hatchet men for agency managers” looking for any infraction to use to punish whistleblowers.
Demand for retribution, reform
Sen. Grassley warned in an April 24 letter to DoD’s acting Inspector General Lynne Halbrooks, “The root cause of the problems identified in this report must be addressed and resolved immediately.”
Grassley also asked her whether “supervisors and managers (were) subjected to administrative review or other corrective actions for their failure to adhere” to the rules and regulations.
In her reply, Halbrooks wrote, “I strongly disagree with the assertion in your letter that OIG officials knowingly ignored the law and showed disrespect for military whistleblowers and the core IG mission.”
She did not say whether anyone would be held accountable, or what reforms have been or will be implemented.
“The lessons learned…have proved vital to establishing more robust policies and procedures,” said Halbrooks’ chief spokesperson Bridget Ann Serchak.
But independent experts and whistleblower advocates are sceptical. POGO for one has called for immediate accountability and concrete reforms. It also wants the OIG to contact complainants whose cases’ closure the review team disagreed with and offer to reopen the cases.