Taxing Poor Nigerians Will Provoke Public Resistance — Sowore

The 2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has criticised Nigeria’s new tax reforms, warning that policies that burden poor citizens will provoke public resistance.

The human rights activist, in an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Monday, argued that Nigerians are already overstretched economically and should not be subjected to additional tax pressure.

“Anybody who taxes poverty will reap resistance, because Nigerians are just too poor right now,” Sowore said.

He maintained that the focus of reform should be on widening the tax net rather than increasing taxes on citizens who are already overburdened.

“What I have always proposed is that we expand our tax base, not to increase taxes. We are not doing well in terms of how much taxes we are collecting.

“I think we are at 17 per cent, and a lot of countries around Africa are at about 20 per cent. It is that increase of how far we go that is important, not to tax people who are already overtaxed,” he said.

READ ALSO: Tax Laws: Govt Won’t Debit Your Account, Oyedele Assures Nigerians

Sowore also questioned the credibility of official data used to justify the reforms, accusing the government of inconsistencies surrounding the tax regime.

“Any time you see data presented by these guys on statistics, lies and lies. You never get anything correct from them. At the end of the day, there will be resistance.

“You’ve heard that the tax regime that came into effect is not the one the National Assembly passed. A tax system that starts with fraud is not taxation; it is extortion,” he added.

The Federal Government recently introduced four tax reform laws: the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025; and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, 2025.

While implementation commenced on January 1, 2026, controversies emerged over alleged discrepancies between what was passed by the National Assembly and what was eventually gazetted.

Addressing the concerns, the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele, stated that versions circulating in the media were unauthorised.

He described them as “fake,” explaining that the discrepancies were linked to an unauthorised draft gazette that had since been corrected.

In response to public concerns, the House of Representatives on Sunday released the Certified True Copies (CTCs) of the four Acts signed into law by President Bola Tinubu.

According to a statement signed by the House spokesperson, Akin Rotimi, the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, ordered the immediate release of the documents to ensure transparency and public verification.

Rotimi said the decision, taken in consultation with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, followed allegations that the laws in circulation differed from those approved by the legislature and assented to by the president.

Amid widespread speculation, the Federal Government has assured Nigerians that the new tax regime will not involve automatic debits from personal bank accounts when it fully takes effect on January 1, 2026.

Oyedele stressed that the reforms are designed to be transparent and citizen-driven.

He added that the reforms would protect small businesses and vulnerable Nigerians, noting that the tax system has been redesigned to be progressive rather than regressive.

Earlier, President Bola Tinubu reaffirmed that the implementation of the new tax laws would proceed as scheduled, despite opposition from political figures, labour unions, and civil society groups.

In a statement, the president said the reforms were aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s fiscal structure rather than increasing taxes.

The reforms, signed into law in June 2025, include a full personal income tax exemption for individuals earning ₦800,000 or less annually, while small businesses with a turnover below ₦100 million are exempt from company income tax, VAT, and the development levy.

Despite the clarifications, opposition voices remain critical. Former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, accused the Federal Government of illegally altering the tax laws after their passage by the National Assembly.

Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, also criticised the tax laws, warning that prosperity cannot be achieved by placing heavier burdens on poor citizens.