December 29, (THEWILL) — The National Assembly and the Presidency at the weekend tied up the loose ends in the controversy that has trailed the Nigeria tax Act and Tax Administration in the past two weeks. While President Bola Tinubu, who is on a yuletide vacation in Lagos, received a tax team led by the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele at Government House, Marina, the leadership of the National Assembly instructed the Clerk to the National Assembly to re-gazette Nigeria’s newly enacted tax laws following growing controversy.
According to Oyedele whose team presented the President with the Tax Act, the government would proceed with the implementation of the Act despite growing public outcry against its suspension until the contentious aspects in the gazetted tax laws are addressed properly.
Oyedele said there are four bills, two of which had already been implemented simce June 2025- the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, while the remaining two, namely the Nigeria Tax Act and the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, would commence on January 1, 2026.
“The plan to commence the new law, the two remaining new laws on the first of January 2026, will go ahead as planned, on schedule, because these reforms are designed to provide relief to the Nigerian people,” Oyedele told journalists at the weekend.
On the same day, the leadership of the National Assembly, led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, directed the Clerk to the National Assembly to re-gazette Nigeria’s newly enacted tax laws following growing controversy.
Spokesperson of the House of Representatives, Hon. Akin Rotimi, who said the National Assembly had commenced a review of the tax laws to address concerns raised in the public space, said the decision to re-gazette the laws was taken to provide clarity and ensure accuracy in the legislative record, stressing that the matter is being handled strictly within the constitutional and statutory powers of the National Assembly.
Rotimi explained that the leadership ordered the re-gazetting of the Acts and the issuance of Certified True Copies of the versions duly passed by both chambers. He noted that the step is purely administrative and aimed at properly authenticating and reflecting the legislative decisions taken by the National Assembly.
‘In the course of this review, and in the interest of clarity, accuracy, and the integrity of the legislative record, the leadership of the National Assembly, under the President of the Senate, Distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio, GCON, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, PhD, GCON, has directed the Clerk to the National Assembly to re-gazette the Acts and issue Certified True Copies of the versions duly passed by both Chambers of the National Assembly. This administrative step is intended solely to authenticate and accurately reflect the legislative decisions of the National Assembly,” the statement reads.
Abdulsamman Dasuki, a Reps from Sokoto had recently raised concerns over discrepancies between the tax laws passed by the legislature and the versions that were gazetted. His claims ignited widespread public criticism and debate over the integrity of the process.
According to him, the illegal insertion into the tax bills after parliamentary approval included areas such as New Coercive Powers Without Legislative Consent; Arrest powers granted to tax authorities; Property seizure and garnishment without court orders; Enforcement sales conducted without judicial oversight
Other mangled provisions included Mandatory 20% security deposit before appealing tax assessments; Compound interest on tax debts; Quarterly reporting requirements with lowered thresholds; Forced USD computation for petroleum operations; Deletion of quarterly and annual reporting obligations to the National Assembly; Elimination of strategic planning submission requirements and Removal of ministerial supervisory provisions
Apart from political opposition which have called for the suspension of the January 1, 2026 implementation date until the controversy is sorted out, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, has called for an urgent and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the recently passed Tax Reform Acts.
President of the organisation, Afam Osigwe,a senior advocate of Nigeria, SAN, said the controversies trailing the tax laws raise serious concerns about the integrity, transparency, and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process. The association warned that the situation strikes at the core of constitutional governance.
According to the NBA, the manner in which the Tax Reform Acts were enacted has created legal and procedural uncertainties capable of eroding public confidence in democratic institutions.
It stressed that law making in a constitutional democracy must follow clear, open, and verifiable procedures, particularly when legislation has far-reaching economic and social implications.
“The controversies that have emerged in relation to the recently enacted Tax Reform Acts raise grave concerns about the integrity, transparency and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process,” the NBA stated. It added that such developments undermine the procedural sanctity that must attend lawmaking in a democratic society.
The NBA called for a comprehensive, open and transparent inquiry to clarify the alleged alterations and the circumstances surrounding the passage of the laws. Pending the outcome of such an investigation, the association demanded the immediate suspension of all plans to implement the Tax Reform Acts.
It warned that allowing the laws to take effect amid unresolved controversies would deepen legal and policy uncertainty, with potentially serious implications for the economy.
“Legal and policy uncertainty of this magnitude has far-reaching consequences. It unsettles the business environment, erodes investor confidence and creates unpredictability for individuals, businesses and institutions required to comply with the law.
“Such uncertainty is inimical to economic stability and should have no place in a system governed by the rule of law,” the NBA said. The NBA therefore urged all relevant authorities to act swiftly and responsibly to address the controversy, in the overriding interest of constitutional order, economic stability and the preservation of the rule of law.
Nigerians in their numbers have taken to social media to protest against the implementation, using various hashtags such as #NotoNewTax’ #SuspendNewTaxLaws and #NewTaxBillControversy. They express distrust of government intention and maintain that the new tax will go to fund the consumption habits of the governing elite.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC and Trade Union Congress, TUC, have expressed fears that the new tax will further increase the woes of many Nigerians and call for mass action against the implementation on January 1, 2026 until the alleged grey areas are fully sorted out. Tax man Oyedele argues otherwise.
“The plan to commence the new law, the two remaining new laws on the first of January 2026, will go ahead as planned, on schedule, because these reforms are designed to provide relief to the Nigerian people,” Oyedele said at the weekend, adding that, “Bottom 98 per cent of workers will see either no pay tax or lower taxes to be paid. Small businesses, 97 per cent of them, will be exempted from corporate income tax, VAT, withholding tax, and large businesses will see a drop in the taxes that they paid.”
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