Chairman, Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, yesterday declared the controversial tax regulations currently in circulation as fake.

There had been allegations that the reform documents recently signed by President Bola Tinubu into law were different from what the National Assembly had passed.

But Oyedele, in an interview in Channels Television, said any allegations over alterations of the original tax laws passed as passed by the National Assembly could only be established both the gazetted documents are compared with the harmonised version of the Senate and House of Representatives.

Oyedele, said though he had seen the gazetted copy “but we do not have the officially harmonised bill certified by the Clerk of the National Assembly and transmitted to the President.”

“What has been circulating widely—reported by several media organisations—is fake.

“When I saw those materials, I took a very keen interest. I reached out to a member of the committee set up by the House of Representatives.

“One of the circulating documents referenced Section 41, Subsection 8, claiming a 20 per cent deposit requirement. I know that provision is not in the final gazette; it was only in an earlier draft.

“So, it made no sense that such a mix-up could occur unless someone circulated a report before the committee had even met.”

He said, “What is in the media did not come from the committee set up by the House. We should allow them to conduct their investigation. Ultimately, this issue is not just about tax reform laws; it’s about process.

“We need a system that is almost tamper-proof, similar to how currency or ballot papers are printed. Legislation matters that much.”

Oyedele said, “Let’s get into the specific sections that are being alleged to have been changed. We want to examine them. I’ll start with the Nigeria Revenue Service Act, Section 25, on accounts and audit.

“It states that the Service shall keep proper accounts and records, and that such accounts shall, not later than six months after the end of each year, be audited by auditors appointed by the Board from the list and in accordance with the guidelines supplied by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

“Let me make a few very important clarifications. Before anyone can say that there is a difference between what was gazetted and what was passed, we need to have both documents. At the moment, we have what was gazetted, but we do not have the officially harmonised bill certified by the Clerk of the National Assembly and transmitted to the President.

“That’s a fundamental point. Only lawmakers can authoritatively say, ‘This is what we sent’. It should not be the House version or the Senate version; it must be the harmonised version certified by the Clerk.

“Even I do not have that document. I only have what was presented to the President for assent.”

Reacting to calls for the suspension of implementation of the tax law on January 1 to avoid chaos, Oyedele said misinformation remained a real challenge.

He said delays in implementation will rob small businesses of the tax reliefs among others.

He said, “Even before these allegations, some people were already calling for suspension or outright rejection of the reforms. A major issue we’ve faced is misinformation.

“Legally, only lawmakers can postpone implementation. That decision is beyond my authority. It should be informed by the outcome of their investigation.”

He said, “But let me be clear: what some people are doing is recruiting Nigerians to fight a reform meant to benefit the majority, by creating fear.

“What is the cost of delay? It means continuing the status quo: the bottom 90 per cent of workers remain overtaxed; small businesses miss exemptions; large firms face nuisance taxes; minimum taxes apply to low-income and unprofitable businesses; hidden VAT continues to raise the cost of food, healthcare, and education.”

Continuing, he said, “If substantial alterations are found, those provisions should be treated as not part of the law, while the rest of the law—properly passed—should still be implemented. Even within the laws passed, there are areas we already know need amendments, such as inconsistent definitions of small business.

Commenting on claims that businesses are already marking up prices for next year because of uncertainty surround the new tax laws, Oyedele expressed regrets that the good intentions of tax reforms were being misconstrued.

He said, “This is heartbreaking. A friend recently went to a tailor who quoted a high price. When asked why, the tailor said prices would go up in January because of tax reform. He couldn’t even explain which part.

“This is dangerous. The tax reform is designed to reduce costs. Businesses will now get VAT input credits on assets and overheads. That alone is worth about N3.4 trillion based on 2024 collections.

“Corporate income tax drops. Ninety-eight percent of workers pay less tax. Small businesses earning up to N100 million annually pay no corporate tax, no VAT, and no withholding tax.

“Prices should calm down, not rise. Many of the fears being sold already exist in worse form under the current tax laws. Multiple taxes, consumption taxes—these have been harmonised or removed.

“We’ve also eliminated many multiple taxes where constitutional constraints allow, and we’re working with states on tax harmonisation laws. Several states have already passed such laws and are awaiting assent.”

On the anxiety over about personal income tax increases for those earning above N1 million monthly, he said,

This is another major misinformation. Anyone earning N2 million or less per month will either pay no tax or less tax under the new law. Many people misunderstand tax tables.

“Taxable income is not the same as gross income. You deduct statutory contributions, insurance, mortgage interest, rent relief, and allowances before arriving at taxable income. The first N800,000 of taxable income is taxed at zero percent.

“We’ve created a calculator on fiscalreforms.ng where people can compare current and new tax liabilities. Only the top 2 percent of earners will pay more, and even then, marginally. You don’t hit the 25 percent rate unless you earn close to N1 billion annually.

“Even high-income earners who pay slightly more personally will benefit far more through reduced taxes on their businesses.”

Continuing, he said, Let’s take a practical example: a vulcaniser earning about N10,000 daily, six days a week—roughly N2.8 million annually. He’s unregistered but uses a bank account. What happens?

“That money is revenue, not profit. He has expenses: equipment, materials, rent, transport. We’re introducing a presumptive tax system with thresholds. Anyone earning up to about N40,000 daily in revenue will be exempt. Many micro-businesses—roadside vendors, small artisans—will not pay tax at all.

“We want to protect them and remove discretion from individual tax officers. This reform is about fairness. And under the new law, the reporting threshold itself is N25 million.”

Also, speaking about his role in the drafting of the new tax regulations, Oyedele said, “My role has been the privilege of leading a team of very patriotic Nigerians from all walks of life. I’ve said this a number of times: at some point, we had over a hundred people working together to examine our tax system—what was wrong with it, because a lot was wrong—and to determine how we could address those issues with one clear objective: to make Nigeria better for everyone.

“So, while you may see me speaking publicly, this has been teamwork over the past two and a half years. I’m extremely proud of the team and their commitment.

“What role did we play? We were the team that drafted the bills. While drafting them, we created a very rigorous process, because we were aware of instances in the past where there were multiple versions of a bill circulating.”

He said, “I remember during the Petroleum Industry Bill process, there was so much confusion that people weren’t even sure which version was being discussed.

“We designed a rigorous process to guarantee the integrity of the bills. Once the President transmitted them to the National Assembly, our role shifted mainly to explaining the thinking behind the various provisions in the proposed laws, which many people followed.

“The legislative process itself is quite rigorous and elaborate. The House Committee on Finance did its work, the Senate Committee on Finance did its work, and where necessary, they provided explanations for their decisions. Each chamber passed its own version. Because the two versions were not the same, they had to be harmonised.

“Once the harmonised version was sent to the President, my specific role was to review what the President assented to and determine whether there were any major or substantial changes to the policy direction.

“For example, the objectives were to harmonise taxes, reduce taxes on businesses, and eliminate taxes on low-income earners. My focus was to see whether anything in those policy directions had been substantially altered in a way that might warrant concern.

“After assent, when the law was being gazetted—and I deliberately use the word “gazetted”—we were still keenly interested in ensuring that editing issues, references, numbering, and definitions were properly handled.

“Many viewers may recall that an initial draft of the gazette was released without authorisation. That draft contained errors. We escalated those issues, and many of the corrections were made before the final gazette was produced.” (THISDAY)

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