TINUBU DECLARES END OF COLONIAL TAX ERA: “NEW SYSTEM WILL CREATE OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPERITY”
GREATRIBUNETVNEWS–PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has declared that Nigeria’s colonial-era tax laws “impoverished Nigerians” and says new reforms will unlock prosperity, as he commissioned the 16-storey Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) Headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
Key Issues:
– Condemning Old Tax System: _”Colonial-era tax laws impoverished Nigerians through fragmentation, multiplicity, and inconsistencies”_ — President Bola Tinubu
– Promise of Prosperity : _”The new reforms will deliver greater prosperity and inclusivity”_ and the system is _”designed to be people-centred and investment-friendly, thereby advancing the nation’s development goals.”_ — President Tinubu
– Breaking From the Past : _”On my inauguration day, I made a solemn pledge that we will move Nigerians from the dimness of uncertainty into the clear light of renewed hope. I committed to confronting structural weaknesses, restoring financial stability, and building an economy anchored in discipline, equity, and opportunity. Today, I stand before you to reaffirm that these words were not rhetoric; they were a covenant with the Nigerian people.”_ — President Tinubu
– Why Reform Was Needed : _”No serious nation can achieve lasting prosperity on a weak and fragmented revenue system. No government can demand trust from its citizens when taxation is opaque, inefficient or unjust. That is why this administration took the bold decision to embark on far-reaching tax and fiscal reforms.”_ — President Tinubu
– What the Reforms Do : _”The reforms are designed to simplify our system, eliminate distortions and create a fair, transparent and investment-friendly environment. Our direction is clear: to have a revenue system that rewards enterprise, supports growth, and ensures that every contribution to the national cause is matched by feasible value for the people.”_ — President Tinubu
– Early Results: _”The early results are encouraging and fantastic… We are witnessing improved fiscal stability, strength, stronger foreign reserves, a more efficient trade ecosystem and increased investor confidence in Nigeria’s economic direction.”_ — President Tinubu
– New NRS Headquarters: The 16-storey building was _”completed in 30 months, after more than two decades since the foundation was laid”_ and provides space for _”3,000 staff, along with a data processing centre, clinic, auditorium, training facilities, a gym, and a library.”_ Tinubu called it _”a symbol of a new standard of professionalism, transparency, efficiency and service.”_
– Mandate to NRS: _”It must not only collect revenue, but it must also build trust, ensure fairness, and demonstrate that government can be accountable, efficient, and responsible. It must become a model institution that earns confidence at home and respect abroad.”_ — President Tinubu to NRS Chairman Dr Zacch Adedeji
– Praise for Reform Team: He thanked _”Minister of State for Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, for his leadership in modernising colonial-era tax laws into ‘manageable, realisable, and understandable levels.'”_
Dignitaries present included Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, ministers, lawmakers, private-sector leaders, and governors of Kwara, Imo, Borno, Kogi, Plateau, and Anambra States.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio urged Nigerians to be patient with the Tinubu administration, noting that the economic reforms are already yielding results.
“Nobody has noticed that since we came on board, we have not had 3-5 km of vehicles lined up at fuel stations to buy petrol. There was a time that we were prepared to pay even N10,000 per litre for fuel, but they could not see the fuel. But today, there is no single fuel queue in Nigeria.
“Nobody is saying that because we encouraged and partnered with the private sector for the first time, we are now producing what we consume and consuming what we produce. We even go to the extent of sending it to other countries,’’ the Senate President noted.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, commended the President for strengthening the economy with new reforms.
“For many years, our revenue system struggled less from a lack of effort than from a lack of coherence. We operated multiple regimes, overlapping mandates and fragmented legal frameworks. The result was predictable—high effort, low yields, limited public confidence.
“What has come under your administration is not only the policy directive, but also the underlying logic of the system. The reforms have sought to align rules, institutions and incentives within a single framework”, Abbas said.
In his welcome address, the Executive Chairman of the NRS, Dr Zacch Adedeji, described the commissioning of the headquarters building as “the culmination of a defining institutional journey.”
“When this administration assumed office, Nigeria faced a critical inflexion point marked by fiscal constraints, weakened investor confidence and structural distortion across key sectors. What followed was not an incremental adjustment but a comprehensive concept of the nation’s economic and financial architecture.
“Through your decisive actions, you restored microeconomic credibility, unified foreign exchange markets, cleared long-standing backlogs and re-established confidence in Nigeria’s ability to operate a transparent and market-driven system,’’ he added.
Adedeji thanked the President for providing visionary leadership and support to the NRS.
“These were not easy decisions, but they were necessary. History will recognise and be kind to you for them. Building on this foundation, your administration undertook one of the most significant revenue reforms in Nigeria’s history.
“To put this in perspective, the first tax laws in this country were enacted in 1903, 133 years ago. We changed that. Over 60 fragmented tax laws were streamlined into a simplified and more coherent framework, strengthening compliance, improving predictability, and enabling efficient administration,” Adedeji noted.
He emphasised that the new tax laws are not “driven by a higher tax burden, but by a better system with broadened coverage and improved structural governance.”
According to Adedeji, “Five years ago, the total collection for Nigeria’s revenue was N6.8 trillion, and by 2025, we ended the year with N28.7 trillion.
He added that, beyond taxation, fiscal governance has been strengthened to improve remittances, enhance transparency, and tighten control over public finance flows.
“To put this in perspective, Mr President, in May 2023, when you assumed office, the total money available for the federation was N711 billion. By September 2025, it was N3.6 trillion, which is 400% above what we inherited, and you can see that from the commissioning you’ve done in the states. They allude to the fact that you’ve given them what no government in the history of Nigeria has given to them.
“Trade has been modernised through the recently launched National Single Window (NSW), reducing inefficiency and boosting revenue. Ten years ago, we tried to implement the National Single Window six times. In less than three years under your leadership, in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service, we launched the National Single Window on March 27th,” Adedeji stated.
Guan Shuai, the Managing Director of China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CECC), which completed the edifice, delivered a goodwill message.
He stated that President Tinubu has demonstrated visionary leadership within less than three years in office, by taking tough decisions that will benefit the nation and posterity.
Shuai noted that the Renewed Hope Agenda has repositioned the economy for foreign direct investment, with the President consistently commissioning infrastructure projects across states.
“When I was a young man, I saw him use his leadership and visionary planning to achieve so much in Lagos, and now he has established a party and united many people,’’ he stated.
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