The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has asked President Bola Tinubu to order the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to publicly release certified true copies of the tax bills sent from the National Assembly and the versions he eventually signed into law.
SERAP in a statement released on Sunday, December 21, said the request follows allegations that the tax bills passed by lawmakers were altered before being gazetted by the Federal Government.
The group wants access to documents including the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act and the Nigeria Tax Act.
It also urged Tinubu to direct the Attorney General to state clearly whether the versions of the tax bills transmitted by the National Assembly are identical to those he assented to and that were later gazetted.
The demand was contained in a Freedom of Information letter dated December 20, 2025, and disclosed in a statement on Sunday by SERAP’s deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare.
In the letter, SERAP further called on Tinubu to set up an independent panel of inquiry to probe allegations that “material changes” were made to the tax laws after they were passed by the legislature.
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“The proposed panel should be headed by a retired Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria or Court of Appeal.
“The findings of the panel should be made public. Anyone responsible for the alleged alterations must face prosecution, as appropriate.
“Widely publishing a certified true copy of the version of the tax bills received from the National Assembly and a certified true copy of the tax laws signed by you would allow Nigerians to scrutinise the laws and compare them with the version of the tax laws ultimately gazetted.
“The alleged unlawful alterations of the tax laws would offend the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], the requirements of international human rights law, and the fundamental principles of the rule of law and separation of powers,” it said.
SERAP added: “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.
“If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel your government and the Attorney General to comply with our request in the public interest.”
First Daily reports that the move comes after Abdussamad Dasuki (PDP, Sokoto) raised a point of privilege on December 17 in the House of Representatives, alleging discrepancies between the harmonised tax bills approved by the National Assembly and the versions later gazetted by the Federal Government.