Rep alleges published tax laws differ from versions approved by NASS

A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abdulsammad Dasuki (PDP, Sokoto), has raised the alarm that the tax laws currently in circulation do not reflect the versions passed by the National Assembly.

Speaking on a Point of Privilege during plenary on Wednesday, Dasuki said his legislative rights had been violated, insisting that the contents of the gazetted tax laws differ from what lawmakers debated, voted on, and approved.

He explained that after the passage of the tax reform bills, he spent three days examining the gazetted copies alongside the Votes and Proceedings of the House and the harmonised versions adopted by both chambers of the National Assembly, during which he identified discrepancies.

“I was present, I voted, and my vote was counted, yet what I am seeing now is entirely different,” Dasuki said. He added that copies of the laws obtained from the Ministry of Information did not align with the versions approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The lawmaker stressed that his intervention was not intended as a motion but as a warning to the House about a serious breach of legislative procedure and the Constitution.

He called on Speaker Tajudeen Abbas to direct that all relevant documents, including the harmonised versions, Votes and Proceedings of both chambers, and the gazetted laws in circulation, be presented before the Committee of the Whole for examination by all members.

“Mr Speaker, members must see what is contained in the gazetted copies and compare them with what was passed on the floor so that necessary corrections can be made. This amounts to a breach of the Constitution and our laws,” he said.

Responding, Speaker Abbas, who presided over the session, said the House had taken note of the concern and assured that appropriate steps would be taken.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had, on June 26, 2025, signed four tax reform bills into law: the Nigeria Tax Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, the Nigeria Revenue Service Act, and the Joint Revenue Board Act. The laws are designed to overhaul Nigeria’s tax system, boost revenue generation, improve the business environment, and strengthen tax administration across all levels of government.

Under the new tax regime, the Value Added Tax (VAT) rate remains at 7.5 per cent, despite earlier proposals for an increase to 12.5 per cent, although its scope has been expanded. Essential items including food, education, healthcare, public transport, residential rent, and exports are zero-rated to cushion inflationary pressures.

The VAT revenue-sharing formula has also been adjusted, with 30 per cent allocated based on consumption, 50 per cent shared equally among states, and 20 per cent distributed according to population.