Whistleblower portal

One central contact

The city administration of Bocholt bases all of its actions on applicable law. This applies to all employees of the city administration. Against this background, the topics of "Good Governance" and "Compliance" play a central role in the actions of the Bocholt city administration.

Both systems combined should serve and work towards ensuring that municipal companies and holdings as well as the administration itself behave and act in a perceptibly correct and appropriate manner.

This requires a systematic approach in order to meet the increasingly stringent external requirements placed on and in the organisational structure.

In this context, the European Union has set requirements and standards for effective whistleblower protection with the "Directive on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law" (known as the "Whistleblower Directive").

Citizens who suspect improper behaviour by the city administration of Bocholt or municipal companies should be able to report these suspicions confidentially and securely. The European Union also wants to enable employees of municipal companies and holdings as well as the administration itself to do the same.

Due to the great importance, complexity and overlap of the topics, the city administration of Bocholt has appointed a central contact person for "Good Governance and Compliance". As the anti-corruption officer, he is also responsible for the prevention and prosecution of corruption.

Employees, but also citizens and companies, can contact the central contact person confidentially and discreetly if they have any questions.

Give hints confidentially

In addition, it is possible to report tips anonymously and confidentially using an online form. The KAAW (Kommunale ADV-Anwendergemeinschaft) provides a secure form for the Bocholt municipal administration as an independent body. With the help of a PIN number, which you assign yourself, you can view the status of the process after sending the notice.

What do the terms "good governance" and "compliance" mean?

The terms "good governance" and "compliance" are often mixed up. One reason for this is that there is no uniform definition or legal definition for both terms.

• Good governance means something like "administrative constitution".
• Compliance, on the other hand, means something like "observance and adherence", i.e. the observance of rules, not only laws and regulations but also internal guidelines and standards.

The difference lies in the perspective: "Good governance" is based on the external perspective; this is primarily about trust and transparency in the external effect. "Compliance", on the other hand, looks inwards at the administration and municipal companies. This means that the primary focus is on the self-protection of the employees and associated bodies.