In what is fast becoming one of the most consequential legal and governance controversies of the Tinubu era, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has issued a grave constitutional warning: a tax law that was never passed in the form in which it was gazetted is, in law, a nullity.
At the heart of the controversy is the allegation that the tax reform legislation recently gazetted by the Federal Government differs materially from the version debated and passed by the National Assembly. If proven, legal experts say the implications are profound — striking at the integrity of Nigeria’s lawmaking process, investor confidence, taxpayer protections, and the rule of law itself.
Why This Matters: Lawmaking Is a Constitutional Process, Not an Administrative Shortcut
Atiku’s intervention reframes the debate beyond politics or opposition. His argument is strictly constitutional.
Under Section 58 of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, a bill becomes law only after:
- Passage by both chambers of the National Assembly,
- Presidential assent, and
- Gazetting as an act of publication — not alteration.
Gazetting, Atiku stresses, is purely administrative. It does not create law, amend law, or correct defects. Where a gazetted document misrepresents what lawmakers approved, it has no legal force.
In simple terms: a law that Parliament never passed cannot be smuggled into existence through printing or publication.
Any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification — without returning the bill to the legislature for fresh consideration — is not a clerical error. In law, it amounts to forgery.
Re-Gazetting Without Re-Passage? A Dangerous Precedent
Equally troubling, critics argue, are reports of attempts to “re-gazette” the disputed tax law while legislative investigations are allegedly being stalled.
From a legal and governance standpoint, this approach is indefensible.
Illegality cannot be cured by speed.
Administrative urgency cannot override constitutional procedure.
The only lawful remedy, Atiku insists, is clear and non-negotiable:
- Fresh legislative scrutiny,
- Re-passage in identical form by both chambers,
- Fresh presidential assent, and
- Proper gazetting.
Anything short of this risks normalising constitutional shortcuts — a precedent that could haunt future fiscal, commercial, and regulatory laws.
Beyond Atiku: Yoruba Union Raises the Stakes
The controversy has now widened beyond elite political debate.
A Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Ìgbìnmó Májékóbájé Ilé-Yorùbá, has gone further, alleging that the altered tax law strips Nigerians of critical constitutional safeguards. According to the group, the gazetted version allegedly empowers tax authorities to seize and dispose of citizens’ properties within 14 days of alleged default — without a court order.
If accurate, this would represent a radical departure from established legal protections, where judicial oversight is mandatory before asset seizure.
The group describes the alleged provisions as:
- Anti-people,
- Anti-business, and
- Economically incendiary in a climate already defined by inflation, currency pressure, fuel price shocks, and weak purchasing power.
For small and medium-scale enterprises — the backbone of Nigeria’s economy — such powers could mean sudden closures, job losses, and cascading social instability.
Rule of Law, Investor Confidence, and Tax Morality
From a business and investment perspective, this dispute strikes at a deeper nerve.
Tax reform thrives on predictability, legality, and trust. Investors — domestic and foreign — do not fear taxes as much as they fear arbitrary enforcement. Where administrative agencies appear empowered to bypass courts, confidence erodes rapidly.
Equally important is tax morality. Citizens are more likely to comply when they see:
- Due process respected,
- Public revenues translated into visible services, and
- Leaders themselves subject to the law.
The perception — fair or not — that laws can be altered after passage corrodes this fragile social contract.
Not Anti-Reform — Pro-Integrity
Both Atiku and the Yoruba group are careful to state that this is not opposition to tax reform itself. Nigeria needs a modern, efficient, and enforceable tax system to fund development.
What is being challenged is process, not policy.
Reforms that bypass constitutional safeguards risk collapsing under judicial review, triggering prolonged litigation, policy uncertainty, and reputational damage at a time Nigeria can least afford it.
The Bigger Question Nigeria Must Answer
Ultimately, this controversy poses a stark question:
Will Nigeria strengthen its reform agenda by anchoring it firmly on constitutional integrity — or weaken it through expediency and procedural shortcuts?
In tax policy, as in governance, how a law is made is just as important as what the law says.
BRANDECONOMY INSIGHT
The controversy over the alleged gazetting of a tax law that differs from what was passed by Nigeria’s National Assembly strikes at the very heart of governance, investor confidence, and economic stability. Beyond the political noise, the episode raises deeper structural red flags for Nigeria’s business environment and reform credibility.
1. Rule of Law Is an Economic Asset
For investors, laws are not just legal instruments; they are risk anchors. Any perception that legislation can be altered post-passage without due process undermines confidence in contracts, tax planning, and long-term capital commitments. If laws can be “re-written” administratively, predictability—the lifeblood of investment—evaporates.
2. Tax Reform Without Trust Will Fail
Nigeria urgently needs tax reform to broaden its revenue base, reduce oil dependence, and fund infrastructure and social services. However, tax compliance is fundamentally trust-based. Allegations of forged or altered tax laws risk deepening public resistance, encouraging informality, and weakening already fragile compliance levels, especially among SMEs.
3. SMEs and the Informal Economy at Risk
Small businesses, which account for the bulk of employment, operate on thin margins and limited legal buffers. Any tax regime perceived as arbitrary or coercive—particularly one allegedly empowering asset seizures without court oversight—could push more enterprises underground or out of business altogether, shrinking the tax net rather than expanding it.
4. Institutional Integrity vs. Reform Speed
While the Tinubu administration has emphasised speed and decisiveness in reforms, this episode underscores a hard truth: reforms that shortcut constitutional process can be more damaging than delays. Markets reward credibility, not haste. Sustainable reform must be procedurally clean, not just economically sound.
5. Nigeria’s Global Image Is at Stake
At a time when Nigeria is courting foreign capital, multilateral funding, and diaspora investment, allegations of legislative irregularities send the wrong signal. Global investors benchmark countries not only on growth prospects but also on governance discipline and institutional checks.Bottom Line
Tax reform is necessary. But legitimacy is non-negotiable. For Nigeria’s reform agenda to succeed, every law—especially one that directly affects property rights and business survival—must be transparently passed, faithfully gazetted, and constitutionally defensible. Anything less risks turning reform into resistance, and opportunity into uncertainty.
