Zacch Adedeji, chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, has asked security agencies to be on alert over rumours of protests against tax laws.
Adedeji spoke on Sunday during an interview on Arise Television, where he cautioned Nigerians against being misled by misinformation surrounding the reforms.
He said citizens should study the tax laws carefully and understand how the provisions affect them, rather than relying on rumours or calls for mass action.
“The only message I have for Nigerians is that people should not listen to rumours. They should analyse the data as it affects them. They should wait for the result, not mass or mob action,” the NRS chairman said.
The taxman said calls to suspend the implementation of the tax laws are unconstitutional, noting that laws passed by the national assembly cannot be suspended by individuals or pressure groups.
“No individual, except in an emergency, can suspend the law. The law passed by the national assembly is the law,” he said.
Adedeji insisted that the tax reform bills went through extensive consultations, including public hearings at the national assembly for over six months, before their passage.
Ruling out the suspension of the law, he said only amendments can be made where grievances exist.
“Implementation has started. People have started to see the result, and they say they want to go on a protest.
“I am using this time to call all the security agencies to be on alert.”
He said the protests could not be coming from the poor, whom the reforms are meant to protect, but from unpatriotic individuals seeking to frustrate the benefits of the policy.
Since the federal government introduced its harmonised tax system, mixed reactions have continued to trail the policy.
The implementation of the laws commenced on January 1, following the unveiling of the new corporate identity of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), formerly known as the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
