Atiku Says Alleged Forgery Of Tax Laws Amounts To Treason

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has described the alleged forgery of the tax reform laws as treason against the Nigerian people.

There has been growing controversy over alleged alterations to the laws after they were passed by the National Assembly.

The version of the laws assented to by President Bola Tinubu is allegedly different from the ones, passed by parliament.

In a wisely circulated statement on Tuesday, Atiku said the illegal and unauthorized alterations made to legislation was not only an act of treason, a direct assault on the nation’s constitutional democracy.

“This draconian overreach by the executive branch undermines the foundational principle of legislative supremacy in the making of laws. It reveals a government more interested in extracting wealth from struggling citizens than empowering them to prosper,” he stated.

The former vice president listed
provisions of the laws related to coercive powers given to tax authorities without legislative consent as an aberration.

He also deplored arrest powers granted to tax authorities and powers seizure and garnishee property of defaulters without court orders in the law.

The law also granted the tax authorities powers to sell off seized properties of defaulters without recourse to the courts, a provision Atiku said was in clear violation of Sections 4 and 58 of the 1999 Constitution.

“These provisions transform tax collectors into quasi-law enforcement agencies, stripping Nigerians of due process protections that the National Assembly deliberately included,” he noted.

The former vice president said the tax laws would impose increased financial burdens on citizens, with demand for a mandatory 20 percent security deposit before appealing tax assessments

He also listed compound interest on tax debts, quarterly reporting requirements with lowered thresholds, and forced
Dollar computation for petroleum operations as illegal and unconstitutional.

“These changes erect financial barriers that prevent ordinary Nigerians from challenging unjust assessments while increasing compliance costs for businesses already struggling in a difficult economy,” he added.

Atiku also said the laws removed accountability mechanism from tax administration and deleted quarterly and annual reporting obligations to the National Assembly.

Other alleged obnoxious provisions he identified include the elimination of strategic planning submission requirements and removal of ministerial supervisory provisions

“By stripping away oversight mechanisms, the government has insulated itself from accountability while expanding its powers—a hallmark of authoritarian governance.”

Declaring that the government is at war against the people, Atiku said the alleged alterations contained provisions meant to further impoverish Nigerians.

He said, “This constitutional violation exposes a troubling reality: a government obsessed with imposing ever-increasing tax burdens on impoverished Nigerians rather than creating conditions for prosperity.

“Instead of investing in infrastructure, education, healthcare, and economic empowerment that would expand the tax base organically, this administration chooses the path of aggressive extraction from an already struggling populace.

“Nigeria’s poverty rate remains alarmingly high, unemployment continues to devastate families, and inflation erodes purchasing power daily. Yet rather than supporting citizens to become more productive, thereby generating sustainable tax revenues, the government employs draconian measures to squeeze resources from people who have little left to survive.

“True economic growth comes from empowering citizens, not impoverishing them further through punitive taxation and erosion of legal protections. A thriving economy with prosperous citizens naturally generates robust tax revenues.

“But this requires vision, investment, and patience, qualities evidently lacking in an administration that resorts to constitutional manipulation to achieve short-term fiscal goals.”

Atiku called on the executive branch to immediately suspend the implementation of the tax laws, effective January 1, 2026 to give room for a proper investigation.

He also urged the National Assembly to immediately rectify the alleged illegal alterations through proper legislative processes and hold accountable those responsible for the alleged constitutional breach.

The former vice president similarly called on the judiciary to strike down the alleged unconstitutional provisions and reaffirm the sanctity of the legislative process.

He called on civil society and the Nigerian people to reject “this assault on democratic principles and demand governance that serves the people rather than exploiting them.”

Atiku also called on the government to abandon “this path of extraction and oppression,” and instead focus on policies that enable Nigerian citizens and businesses to thrive.

He charged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately investigate and prosecute those found culpable in the alleged illegal alteration of the laws, which he said, aimed at extorting and defrauding the Nigerian people.

“What the National Assembly did not pass cannot become law. This fundamental principle must be defended, or we risk descending into arbitrary rule where constitutional safeguards mean nothing.

“The Nigerian people deserve better than a government that circumvents democracy to impose hardship. We demand accountability, constitutional compliance, and economic policies that build prosperity rather than deepen poverty.”