THE African Democratic Congress has called for the immediate suspension of Nigeria’s recently introduced tax laws, alleging that critical sections were modified after approval by the National Assembly and assent by President Bola Tinubu, a development the party described as a grave constitutional breach.
In a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Saturday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party warned that altering legislation after approval by the legislature raises concerns that President Tinubu is allegedly seeking to centralise power.
The party’s reaction followed a point of privilege raised on December 17 by Hon. Abdussamad Dasuki (PDP – Sokoto) in the House of Representatives, in which he drew attention to discrepancies between the harmonised bills passed by lawmakers and the versions later released to the public.
In response, the opposition party demanded an immediate halt to the implementation of the tax laws to enable the National Assembly review the alleged alterations and take appropriate corrective action.
The statement read in part: “The African Democratic Congress has reviewed various reports which confirm doubts that the various tax laws passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu contain substantial alterations of key provisions that were not part of the original legislation approved by the legislature.
“ADC’s forensic review of the original laws and the gazetted versions has also established beyond doubt that key accountability provisions were deleted, while new clauses were inserted granting coercive powers to the Executive in enforcing the tax laws without recourse to the courts. For example, one of the insertions allegedly grants the government the express power to arrest individuals and take over their property for non-compliance with the tax laws.
“The ADC’s position on the so-called tax reforms has been made clear. We do not support any tax measures that are likely to compound the hardship already faced by citizens and businesses. However, this issue goes beyond taxation. It reflects a mindset that shows disregard for democratic institutions and constitutional boundaries.”
The party further described any post-legislative alteration of laws as a direct assault on constitutional governance.
“Altering legislation and gazetting it after it has been passed by 469 elected representatives of the Nigerian people is a direct assault on constitutional governance. It is indicative of totalitarian tendencies by a President seeking to concentrate power, even if it means violating the Constitution from which he derives his authority,” the statement said.
The ADC called for a thorough investigation and swift prosecution of any government official found culpable in the alleged forgery.
It added: “For the avoidance of doubt, under our Constitution, only the legislature has the power to make laws. Any legislation not passed in accordance with constitutional provisions cannot stand. To accept that the Executive can insert or remove even a punctuation mark after passage is to usurp legislative authority, which poses a grave danger to our democracy.
“The ADC therefore calls for the immediate suspension of all 2025 tax laws signed by President Bola Tinubu to allow for a full legislative review. This is the only reasonable course of action to preserve the principle of separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution.
“We also call for a full investigation and the immediate prosecution of any government official found culpable in this alleged act of forgery, which strikes at the very heart of our democracy.”