Taiwo Oyedele has revealed why Nigerians are panicking over Tinubu’s new tax policy.
Newsone Nigeria reports that the Chairman of the presidential fiscal policy and tax reforms committee, Taiwo Oyedele, has said lack of adequate awareness is the reason Nigerians are panicking over the country’s new tax reforms ahead of the January 2026 implementation.
The Chairman of the presidential fiscal policy and tax reforms committee made this known to the media over the weekend, saying that Nigerians are discovering many things for the first time.
Oyedele said the bulk of the information made public on Tax Identification Number, Taxpayer Identification Number, the monthly report required by the bank for individuals’ accounts, and others is contained in the 2020 Finance Act.
“But because the level of tax awareness in Nigeria is so poor, people are finding out so many things for the first time.
“They just assume that the new tax law is introducing them. This one is actually not,” Oyedele said.
He clarified that no bank or any government or private authority has the power to withdraw money arbitrarily from individuals’ accounts.
“Even if you have N1 billion in the account, nobody can debit your bank account. That’s why I took you through the process of, if you’re not paying your taxes, they write to you, you write back, you do a final assessment, it’s conclusive, and then you go to court, and then it’s a long process,” Oyedele said.
“No one has the power to debit your account. In the law, there is what we call power of substitution. In some countries, they will say garnishee order,” he said.
Meanwhile, Newsone reports that the clarification comes amid uncertainty ahead of the January 2026 implementation of the 2025 Nigeria Tax Administration Act. Oyedele had said taxable Nigerians are required to have a tax ID to operate their accounts.
