The National Assembly has disowned the four gazetted tax laws which have been generating ripples following the alleged discrepancies between the version passed by the lawmakers as contained in the approved votes and proceedings and those gazetted and circulated to the public.
The legislature late Saturday night released Certified True Copies (CTCs) of the approved versions of the tax laws as earlier passed by both chambers and transmitted for presidential assent.
A comparison of the CTCs to the earlier “altered” gazetted versions shows that the discrepancies have been addressed, with the National Assembly approving the versions it passed and disowning the controversial gazetted copies that had stirred public concern.
The four laws, which took effect on January 1, are the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act and the Nigeria Tax Act.
National Assembly in March, with Votes and Proceedings produced in May; while President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assented to them in June. The laws were gazetted on June 26, according to soft copies of the official gazette sighted by Daily Trust.
A member of the House of Representatives, Abdussamad Dasuki had in December last year, raised a matter of privilege, alleging discrepancies between the tax laws passed by the National Assembly and the versions gazetted and made available to the public.
In a statement at the weekend, the spokesman of the House, Akin Rotimi, Abbas Tajudeen, acting in concurrence with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, directed the immediate release of the CTCs of the tax laws, including the endorsement and assent pages signed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to enable public scrutiny and verification.
The statement said the release of the CTCs underscored the leadership’s commitment to transparency and legislative integrity.
“The attention of the House was drawn to the existence of inconsistent versions of the tax laws in circulation after a vigilant Honourable member identified discrepancies, raised the alarm, and formally reported the matter to the House on a point of privilege.
“Acting promptly, the speaker ordered an internal verification and the immediate public release of the certified Acts to eliminate doubt, restore clarity, and protect the sanctity of the legislative record.”
“In directing the release of the certified Acts, Speaker Abbas reassured Nigerians that the National Assembly remains an institution of records, guided by clearly defined rules, precedents, archival systems, and verification processes that safeguard the authenticity of every law enacted.
“The National Assembly is an institution built on records, procedure, and institutional memory. Every Bill, every amendment, and every Act follows a traceable constitutional and parliamentary pathway. Once a law is passed and assented to, its integrity is preserved through certification and custody by the legislature. There is no ambiguity about what constitutes the law.”
