The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has written to President Bola Tinubu, demanding the release of Certified True Copies (CTCs) of the tax reform bills passed by the National Assembly and those officially signed into law. This decision by SERAP was as a result of allegations that the gazetted versions of the new tax laws, slated to take effect in January 2026, contain unauthorized material changes.
The controversy started when Abdussamad Dasuki, representing PDP, Sokoto, alerted the House of Representatives to discrepancies between the harmonized bills approved by lawmakers and the versions released to the public.
I took my time to look at the gazetted copy… and I am seeing something completely different from what we passed. This is a breach of the Constitution – Abdussamad Dasuki, House of Reps Member
Recall in June 2025, President Tinubu signed four tax reform bills which includes the Nigeria Tax Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act. These bills were meant to simplify the tax code of Nigeria by consolidating outdated statutes and introducing a unified 4% Development Levy.
However, by December 2025, senior lawmakers and opposition figures, including Peter Obi, alleged that the 20% deposit requirement to appeal tax assessments, were sneaked into the laws without legislative approval.
Nigeria has now moved beyond the era of inflated budgets to one where laws themselves are allegedly ‘forged’… This is a national shame that strikes at the core of constitutional governance – Peter Obi, Former Presidential Candidate
SERAP has given the Federal Government seven days to publish the certified documents or face legal action.
SERAP is also calling for an inquiry headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice to identify who, within the Executive arm, might have altered the legislative documents after passage.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has already constituted a seven-man Ad-Hoc Committee, chaired by Mukhtar Betara, to investigate the discrepancies.
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