• Says he’s working with other lawmakers to raise issue as matter of urgent national importance Tuesday

A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Mansur Manu Soro (Bauchi State), has called for the immediate suspension of the Tax Laws, 2025, citing what he described as “existence material discrepancies between the bills duly passed by the National Assembly and the versions subsequently gazetted.”

In a statement released on Sunday, Hon. Soro said his review of the Votes and Proceedings of the National Assembly, the harmonised versions of the tax bills passed by lawmakers, and the Official Gazette revealed “material discrepancies” between the bills approved by the legislature and the versions that were later gazetted.

According to him, the differences are neither minor nor accidental. He alleged that the altered provisions removed key oversight and reporting mechanisms that were expressly approved by the National Assembly, while introducing new coercive and fiscal powers for the executive that were not approved by lawmakers.

“These are deliberate alterations,” Soro said, warning that they amount to a constitutional breach, as legislative authority is vested solely in the National Assembly under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The lawmaker called for the suspension of the Tax Laws, which are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026, until all post-passage changes are identified, removed and properly addressed by the National Assembly.

Soro acknowledged the decision of the House of Representatives to set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate the allegations, describing it as a “commendable step.” However, he raised concerns that the committee’s one-week reporting deadline falls on Thursday, December 25, Christmas Day, which is a public holiday when the House does not sit.

Given the proximity of the implementation date, Soro said he was working with other lawmakers to raise the matter on the floor of the House on Tuesday, December 23, 2025, the final legislative sitting before the Christmas recess, as a Matter of Urgent National Importance.

He stressed that the House must take a clear and definitive position on the issue before proceeding on its Christmas and New Year break, in order to safeguard the integrity of the legislative process and uphold the Constitution.

A member of the House of Representatives, Rep. Abdulsammad Dasuki (Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency, Sokoto State), had last Wednesday raised a matter of privilege on the floor of the House, alleging that the gazetted tax laws did not reflect what lawmakers debated and passed. (THISDAY)

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