Atiku Warns Against ‘Forged’ Laws, Declares New Tax Act Nullity

*National Assembly orders fresh gazetting of controversial laws

Sunday Aborisade in AbujaFormer Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday escalated the controversy trailing President Bola Tinubu’s flagship tax reforms, declaring that the Tax Act, as gazetted, is a constitutional nullity because it does not reflect what was duly passed by the National Assembly.

In a statement issued to journalists, Atiku said the House of Representatives’ confirmation that the published version of the law differed from the bill passed by both chambers raised a “grave constitutional issue,” warning that any law not enacted in the precise form approved by parliament “is not law.”

“A law that was never passed in the form in which it was published is not law. It is a nullity,” Atiku maintained.He stressed  that the Constitution clearly outlines the lawmaking process under Section 58, including passage by the Senate and House of Representatives, presidential assent and then gazetting.According to him, gazetting is merely an administrative act of publication and “does not create law, amend law, or cure illegality.” He added that where a gazette misrepresents legislative approval, it has no legal force.

The former vice president went further to describe any post-passage alteration of a bill without legislative approval as “forgery, not a clerical error.” Atiku insisted that no administrative directive by the leadership of the National Assembly could validate such a defect or justify re-gazetting without a fresh legislative process.He said: “No administrative directive by the Senate President or the Speaker can validate such a defect or justify a re-gazetting without re-passage and fresh presidential assent.”

Atiku warned that attempts to rush a re-gazetting while stalling legislative investigation would undermine parliamentary oversight and set a dangerous precedent, emphasising that his position was not opposition to tax reform but a defence of constitutionalism.“Illegality cannot be cured by speed,” he said, insisting that the only lawful path was fresh legislative consideration, re-passage in identical form by both chambers, fresh assent and proper gazetting.His intervention came as the leadership of the National Assembly announced steps to authenticate the controversial tax laws amid growing public scrutiny.In a statement issued at the weekend by the management of the National Assembly, the legislature said it had commenced an internal review of the processes leading to the enactment of four major fiscal laws.They are the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, 2025; and the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025.The statement, signed by the Director of Information, Bullah Audu Bi-Allah, on behalf of the Clerk to the National Assembly, said the review was prompted by debates surrounding the harmonisation of versions passed by both chambers, the texts that received presidential assent and those subsequently published in the official gazette.As part of immediate administrative measures, the National Assembly said it had directed the Clerk to facilitate the publication of the Acts in the official gazette and issue certified true copies of the assented laws to stakeholders and members of the public on request.It maintained that the exercise was purely administrative and aimed at accurately reflecting legislative decisions already taken, stressing that it did not concede any defect in the exercise of legislative authority by either chamber.While appealing for calm and restraint, the National Assembly reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, constitutionalism and due process, insisting that any procedural refinements identified would be addressed strictly in accordance with the law and established parliamentary conventions.