By Audu Liberty Oseni
Nigeria does not presently have a valid tax law. What exists is merely a bill that has not been properly reconciled and lawfully enacted.
The document that has been gazetted and presented as law is not authentic. It did not emanate from the National Assembly.
Findings of the Select Committee constituted by the legislature have already confirmed that the version gazetted by the Presidency differs materially from the bill actually passed by both chambers of the National Assembly.
Under Nigeria’s constitutional framework, the executive has no authority to make or alter laws. Any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification by the executive arm renders the bill void. Once a bill is altered outside the legislative process, it ceases to be law, regardless of gazetting.
Gazetting an altered document does not confer legality. A forged or unauthorised gazette cannot create a law. Law derives its validity from due legislative process, not executive proclamation.
Therefore, to be clear and accurate:
Nigeria currently has no valid tax law. What exists is an unreconciled and unlawfully altered bill.
We must get the narrative right.
● Liberty Oseni, PhD, is the Director, Centre for Development Communication (CDC). He can be reached at libertydgreat@gmail.com
