Deborah Akinyosoye
The Presidency has weighed in on the controversy trailing the newly signed tax reform laws, with the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele, asking the National Assembly to investigate alleged discrepancies in the gazetted versions of the laws.
Oyedele spoke on Monday on Channels Television’s Morning Brief amid growing calls for the suspension of the implementation of the tax laws by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Peter Obi of the Labour Party, and several civil society organisations.
The controversy followed claims by a member of the House of Representatives, Abdulsamad Dasuki, who alleged that there were discrepancies between the tax bills passed by the National Assembly and the versions later gazetted and made available to the public.
Dasuki argued that his legislative rights had been breached, insisting that the gazetted laws did not reflect what lawmakers debated and approved.
Reacting, Oyedele dismissed reports circulating in the media as misleading, insisting that claims of discrepancies could not be verified without access to the officially certified versions of the bills passed by lawmakers.
“Before you can say there is a difference between what was gazetted and what was passed, we don’t even have what was passed. The official harmonised bills certified by the clerk, which the National Assembly sent to the President, we don’t have a copy to compare. Only the lawmakers can say authoritatively what they sent.”
Oyedele explained that even members of the executive arm, including himself, only had access to the versions presented to President Bola Tinubu for assent.
He also addressed concerns surrounding a controversial provision in Section 41(8), which reportedly required a 20 per cent deposit, saying he reached out to the relevant House committee for clarification.
“I know that particular provision is not in the final gazette, but it was in the draft gazette,” he said, adding that some documents circulating publicly were prepared before the committee had concluded its work.
“What is out there in the media did not come from the committee set up by the House of Representatives. I think we should allow them do the investigation,” Oyedele said.
President Tinubu recently signed four major tax reform bills into law, describing them as the most significant overhaul of Nigeria’s tax system in decades. The laws , the Nigeria Tax Act, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act , are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026.
According to the Federal Government, the reforms aim to simplify tax compliance, expand the tax base, eliminate multiple taxation and modernise revenue collection across all tiers of government.