- Reps Set Up Committee To Probe Alleged Discrepancies In Tax Laws
- Seven member ad hoc committee set up by Speaker
- Lawmaker warns issue threatens legislative integrity
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has constituted a seven member ad hoc committee to investigate allegations of discrepancies between tax bills passed by the National Assembly and the versions later assented to and gazetted.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the committee was set up on Thursday following a Point of Privilege raised on the floor of the House by a lawmaker from Sokoto State, Abdulsammad Dasuki, who alleged that the tax laws made public did not reflect what lawmakers debated and approved.
The ad hoc committee is to be chaired by the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Muktar Aliyu Betara.
Other members of the committee include former Deputy Speaker Ahmed Idris Wase, Sada Soli, James Abiodun Faleke, Fred Agbedi, Babajimi Benson and Iduma Igariwey.
The committee is mandated to examine the legislative process that led to the gazetting of the tax laws and determine whether the final documents differ from the versions passed by both chambers of the National Assembly.
Raising the matter on Wednesday under Order Six Rule Two of the House Rules, Dasuki said his legislative privilege had been breached.
He told the House that the content of the gazetted tax laws was materially different from what lawmakers voted on and approved on the floor.
According to him, he spent three days reviewing the gazetted copies alongside the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Representatives and the harmonised versions adopted by both chambers, where he discovered inconsistencies.
“I was here, I gave my vote and it was counted, and I am seeing something completely different,” Dasuki said.
The lawmaker added that copies of the gazetted laws obtained from the Ministry of Information did not align with what had been passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
He stressed that his intervention was not to move a motion but to alert the House to what he described as a serious violation of legislative procedure and constitutional provisions.
Dasuki urged the Speaker to ensure that all relevant documents, including the harmonised versions, the Votes and Proceedings of both chambers and the gazetted copies in circulation, are presented before the Committee of the Whole for scrutiny.
He warned that allowing laws different from those duly passed by the National Assembly to be presented to the public would undermine the integrity of the legislature.
“Mr Speaker, I will be pleading that all the documents should be brought before the Committee of the Whole. The whole members should see what is in the gazetted copy and see what they passed on the floor so that we can make the relevant amendment.
“This is the breach of the Constitution. This is the breach of our laws, and this should not be taken by this honourable House,” he said.
Responding, Speaker Abbas said he had taken note of the Point of Privilege raised and assured lawmakers that appropriate steps would be taken to address the issue.
The ad hoc committee is expected to clarify the allegations and safeguard the integrity of the legislative process.
