The Federal Government, through the Budget Office, has stressed the need for the implementation of the new tax laws, stating that properly-implemented tax reforms are necessary to reduce dependence on borrowing and inflationary financing, while easing indirect burdens on vulnerable citizens.

This comes amid recent calls for the suspension of the tax reforms, following allegations that the tax laws, as gazetted, differ from those duly passed by the National Assembly and assented to by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Tanimu Yakubu, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, in a statement issued to journalists on Wednesday, cautioned that governance and reform should not be stalled by unresolved conjecture.

“Where clarification is required, it must be provided; where correction is required, it must be effected; where investigation is required, it must proceed,” he said.

Yakubu said that taxation is a democratic covenant that binds citizens and the state, insisting that compliance depends on transparency and trust. He called on political actors to protect institutions as much as positions, urging citizens and businesses to rely on verified sources and resist the spread of unauthenticated information.

The DG explained that the office had taken note of concerns raised by the Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives, stressing that the sanctity of the law is central to constitutional democracy and not a mere procedural formality.

According to him, any suggestion that a law could be altered after debate, passage, authentication, and presidential assent without due process would strike at the core of the Republic and undermine citizens’ right to be governed by transparent and stable laws.

“A nation cannot be governed by insinuation or sustained on circulating documents of uncertain origin,” he said, adding that public confidence, once shaken by speculation, is often difficult to restore.

“Both government and citizens share a common interest in truth, clarity, and due process, public finance depends heavily on trust in the legality and clarity of fiscal laws. The Budget Office welcomed the decision of the National Assembly to investigate the allegations, it is institutional inquiry, not conjecture as the appropriate response to claims of illegality,” the statement read.

On public access to the law, the Office agreed that Nigerians and the business community are entitled to clear and authoritative texts of all laws they are required to obey. It clarified, however, that the authenticity of legislation is determined by certified legislative records and official publication processes, not by informal or viral reproductions.

Yakubu further explained that legal certainty is essential for revenue projections, macroeconomic stability, budget credibility, and investor confidence. He added that the uncertainty around operative tax provisions directly affects economic planning.

To restore confidence, he said the Office has proposed a set of measures, including the publication of verified reference texts in a single public repository, orderly access to Certified True Copies for stakeholders, clear public explanations where discrepancies are alleged, and strict alignment of all implementing regulations with authenticated legal texts.

Yakubu reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to fiscal transparency, institutional integrity, and reforms that advance national prosperity while safeguarding citizens’ rights. (BusinessDay)

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