The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Bola Tinubu to establish an independent panel to investigate claims that recently gazetted tax laws differ significantly from the versions passed by the National Assembly.
In a Freedom of Information request signed by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare on Saturday, the organisation called for a “prompt, independent, impartial, transparent and effective” inquiry to determine what occurred during the lawmaking process and to identify those responsible for any alleged changes.
SERAP recommended that the panel be chaired by a retired Justice of the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal and that its findings be made public, with anyone found responsible facing prosecution. The organisation also requested the publication of certified true copies of both the tax bills passed by the National Assembly and the versions signed into law by the President, including the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, and the Nigeria Tax Act.
The group argued that publishing these documents would allow Nigerians to scrutinise and compare the laws, enhancing transparency and public accountability. SERAP warned that the alleged discrepancies undermine constitutional and legal standards, including the rule of law, separation of powers, and international human rights obligations.
The call for an inquiry follows complaints from lawmakers who raised concerns in Parliament that substantive provisions were altered, inserted, or removed in the gazetted versions without legislative approval. Alleged changes reportedly include new coercive fiscal powers, such as arrest authority, compulsory USD computation, appeal security deposits, and garnishment without court orders.
SERAP has given the government a seven-day deadline to implement its recommended measures, warning that failure to comply would prompt legal action to compel adherence in the public interest.
