African Democratic Congress (ADC), has called for the immediate suspension of Nigeria’s newly enacted tax laws, alleging that key provisions were altered after the bills were passed by the National Assembly and signed by President Bola Tinubu. The party described as a serious constitutional crisis.
The opposition party said the alleged alterations amount to an executive takeover of the lawmaking process and warned that allowing such actions to stand would undermine the principle of separation of powers. The tax laws are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026.
The call was contained in a statement by the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, who said, “The ADC has reviewed several reports confirming longstanding concerns that the various tax laws passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu contain substantial forgeries; key provisions that were not part of the original bills approved by the legislature.”
According to the ADC, a forensic comparison of the bills passed by the National Assembly and the versions later gazetted revealed discrepancies, including the removal of accountability measures and the insertion of enforcement powers that bypass the courts.
“ADC’s forensic review of the original laws and the gazetted versions have established beyond all doubts that key accountability provisions had been deleted and new provisions inserted which granted coercive powers to the Executive in the enforcement of the tax laws without recourse to the court,” Abdullahi stated.
The ADC described as particularly troubling an alleged clause empowering the federal government to arrest individuals and take over property for non-compliance with the tax laws, insisting that such powers were never contemplated or approved by the legislature.
“For example, one of the criminal insertions into the laws grants the government of Bola Tinubu the express power to arrest and take over the property of anyone who does not comply with the tax laws,” the party stated.
While restating its opposition to taxes it believes would worsen the economic hardship facing Nigerians and businesses, the ADC said the controversy goes far beyond fiscal policy and speaks to the character and intent of the administration.
“But this issue goes beyond taxation. It speaks to the criminal mindset of a government that has no ethical boundaries, has no regard for democratic institutions and will do anything to pursue its narrow selfish agenda,” Abdullahi said.
