As a Journalist who is interested in the economic stability of Nigeria, I find the recent alarm raised by the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) to be more than just a procedural grievance; it is a fundamental warning about the health of our democracy. When the CITN, led by Mr. Innocent C. Ohagwa, suggests that there are “discrepancies” between the tax laws passed by the National Assembly and the versions appearing in the official Government Gazette, my concern, and indeed the concern of every taxpayer, should be at an all-time high.
To put it plainly: the law should be what the legislature voted on, not what a clerk or an anonymous official decides to “tweak” before it hits the printing press.
I believe that taxation is the ultimate contract between a state and its citizens. It is the price we pay for a functioning society. However, for that contract to be valid, the terms must be crystal clear. The four new pillars of our fiscal framework, the Nigeria Tax Act (NTA), the Nigeria Tax Administration Act (NTAA), the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act (NRSA), and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act (JRB), are meant to modernize our economy. Yet, if a taxpayer looks at a gazetted law and sees a clause that the National Assembly never debated, we are no longer living under the rule of law; we are living under the rule of the pen.
I agree with Mr. Ohagwa’s assessment that these purported alterations create “legal uncertainty.” Imagine being an investor trying to calculate your liabilities for 2026, only to find that the “official” version of the law contains hidden burdens or missing protections that were never part of the public legislative record. This doesn’t just frustrate accountants; it scares away the very capital Nigeria desperately needs to grow.
In my view, the integrity of the law-making process is the bedrock of public confidence. The Constitution is explicit about how a bill becomes a law. It is debated, passed by both chambers of the National Assembly, and sent for Presidential assent. There is no constitutional provision for “post-passage modification.” If a comma is moved or a paragraph is inserted after the vote, the legislative supremacy of the National Assembly is effectively hijacked.
I find it particularly troubling that these issues are arising now, as we prepare for a major transition in our tax administration. If we allow “proven alterations” to stand, we set a dangerous precedent. What is to stop future administrators from “refining” laws to suit political whims after the public gaze has shifted away from the halls of NASS?
I stand with the CITN in their call for an immediate, side-by-side verification of the legislative drafts and the gazetted Acts. This is not a task that can be delayed. We need a clear, public clarification. If errors were made, they must be corrected through formal, transparent legislative procedures, not through back-channel edits.
Furthermore, I strongly advocate for the “systemic safeguards” mentioned by the Institute. We live in a digital age; the idea that we lack “version-tracking mechanisms” for our nation’s most important documents is unacceptable. We need:
Audit trails for every draft of a bill.
Inter-institutional checks that involve professional bodies like CITN before the final seal is placed.
Public digital repositories where the “as-passed” version is uploaded immediately to prevent tampering.
We cannot build a modern economy on a foundation of shifting sands. Taxation thrives on exactitude. If we allow the “phantom clauses” in these gazetted copies to go unchallenged, we are inviting a future of endless litigation, investor flight, and a breakdown of trust between the governor and the governed.
I urge the authorities to listen to the CITN. Let us fix these discrepancies now, before January 2026, so that the Nigerian taxpayer is not left paying the price for a legislative “copy-paste” error.
Comrade Godwin Anyebe is a Journalist and a Rights Activist.
