THIS DAWN — The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called for the immediate suspension of the tax laws signed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and scheduled to take effect from January 1, 2026.
The demand followed what ADC describes as “substantial forgery” discovered in the final gazetted versions of the legislation.
This was contained in a strongly worded press statement issued on Wednesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi.
The opposition party accused the Tinubu administration of tampering with laws duly passed by the National Assembly.
It warned that the alleged alterations pose a grave threat to constitutional governance and Nigeria’s democratic order.
According to the ADC, forensic reviews comparing the bills passed by the legislature with the versions eventually signed into law and gazetted revealed that key provisions were either deleted or newly inserted without parliamentary approval.
The party described the alleged alterations as criminal and unconstitutional.
“The ADC has reviewed various reports which confirm doubts that the various tax laws passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu contain substantial forgery of key provisions that were not in the original laws passed by the legislature,” the statement said.
Consequences of non-compliance with tax laws
The party further claimed that its own examination of the documents established “beyond all doubt” that accountability safeguards were removed.
Meanwhile, new clauses were introduced granting sweeping coercive powers to the executive arm of government.
One of the most controversial alleged insertions, according to the ADC, empowers the federal government to arrest individuals.
It can also take over individuals’ property for non-compliance with the tax laws, without recourse to the courts.
The ADC warned that such provisions, if allowed to stand, would undermine due process and erode citizens’ fundamental rights.
It argued that the issue transcends disagreements over tax policy and instead exposes what it called a deeper governance crisis.
“We do not support any tax that is more likely to compound the misery and hardship already faced by citizens and businesses.
“But this issue goes beyond taxation.
“It speaks to the criminal mindset of a government that has no ethical boundaries, has no regard for democratic institutions, and will do anything to pursue its narrow, selfish agenda,” the party said.
“Totalitarian instincts”
The opposition party accused President Tinubu of harboring “totalitarian instincts”.
It said Tinubu is seeking to concentrate all powers in the executive, even at the cost of violating the Constitution.
“Altering legislation and gazetting same after it has been passed by 469 elected representatives of the Nigerian people is a direct assault on constitutional governance,” the statement said.
“More fundamentally, it is indicative of the totalitarian instincts of a President desirous of concentrating all powers of government in himself,” it added.
The ADC emphasized that under Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, law-making authority rests solely with the National Assembly.
Any legislation not passed strictly in accordance with constitutional provisions cannot stand, it warned.
“To accept that the Executive could whimsically insert or remove even a punctuation mark from a piece of legislation after it has been passed by the legislature is to arrogate law-making powers to the Executive arm of government,” the party warned.
It added that such a precedent would pose “grave danger” to democracy.
As a result, the ADC demanded the immediate suspension of all tax laws signed in 2025.
This will allow the National Assembly to conduct a full legislative review and determine the extent of the alleged forgery.
It argued that suspension is the only responsible option to preserve the principle of separation of powers.
Investigate and prosecute culpable government officials
In addition, the party called for a public inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the alleged alterations.
It urged law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute any government official found culpable.
“We also call for a full investigation and the immediate prosecution of any government official found culpable in the execution of this act of forgery that strikes at the very heart of our democracy,” Abdullahi said.
The federal government had not issued an official response to the allegations as of the time of filing this report.
The tax reforms form part of the Tinubu administration’s broader fiscal restructuring agenda.
They have already generated significant debate among businesses, labour groups, and opposition parties over their potential economic and social impact.
The ADC’s allegations are expected to intensify scrutiny of the tax laws in the National Assembly.
They could set the stage for legal and political battles in the coming weeks as the 2026 implementation date approaches.
