Godsent Ogbebor
House of Reps Deputy Spokesman Dismisses Minority Caucus’ Tax Law Report as Outdated
Deputy Spokesman of the House of Representatives, Philip Agbese, has dismissed the interim report by the minority caucus regarding alleged alterations to the tax reform laws, labelling it as belated. Agbese stated that the issues raised in the report had already been addressed and resolved before its release.
The minority caucus, led by Afam Ogene, claimed discrepancies existed between the versions of the tax laws passed by the National Assembly and the gazetted copies. They specifically pointed to the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, suggesting that alterations had been made to the official version. The committee alleged that multiple versions of the Act were circulating and that the directive to align the laws with the Federal Government Printing Press pointed to procedural irregularities.
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However, Agbese emphasised that the National Assembly had already taken decisive steps to resolve the matter. He noted that the leadership of both the House and the Senate, working together, ensured that the correct versions of the tax laws were made available to the public. Agbese also highlighted that Speaker Tajudeen Abbas had ordered an internal verification process to ensure that only the authentic versions of the laws were in circulation.
According to Agbese, the swift actions taken by the leadership of the National Assembly demonstrated their commitment to transparency, due process, and the protection of democratic institutions. He further stated that the issue had been comprehensively addressed, ensuring that Nigerians now have access to the correct and lawful versions of the tax reforms.
The controversy over the tax reform laws surfaced shortly after the Acts were gazetted, sparking concerns from both lawmakers and civil society groups about potential discrepancies between the versions debated and passed in the National Assembly and those published by the government printer.
