By Ayo Kehinde
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to direct the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, to publish certified true copies of Nigeria’s newly enacted tax laws.
The demand follows mounting allegations of discrepancies between the bills passed by the National Assembly and the versions gazetted by the Federal Government.
In a Freedom of Information (FOI) request dated December 20, 2025, SERAP asked the President to ensure the public release of the original bills received from the National Assembly alongside the versions he signed into law.
The request covers the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, and the Nigeria Tax Act.
Beyond publication, the organisation called for an independent panel of inquiry, headed by a retired Justice of the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal, to investigate claims that material alterations were made to the laws after their legislative passage.
The intervention follows a point of privilege raised in the House of Representatives by Abdussamad Dasuki, a lawmaker from Sokoto State.
Dasuki alleged that substantive provisions—including new coercive powers such as arrest authority, garnishment without court orders, and compulsory U.S. dollar tax computation—were inserted into the gazetted copies without legislative approval.
SERAP argued that any such alterations would constitute a grave violation of the 1999 Constitution and the principles of the separation of powers.
The group maintained that for laws to be legitimate, they must be accessible, authentic, and reflect the actual intent of the legislature.
“Widely publishing these documents would allow Nigerians to scrutinise the laws and compare them with the gazetted versions, thereby promoting transparency in the lawmaking process”, the organisation stated.
SERAP further warned that it would pursue legal action if the requested documents are not made public within seven days.
The group emphasised that transparency is essential to address potential threats to human rights and to reinforce public confidence in the integrity of Nigeria’s legislative and executive processes.
