"The Nigeria Tax Act 2025 is a necessary reform but it must not become a burden that taxes hope out of the Nigerian people."

When the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 was signed into law, it was hailed as a bold step toward reforming Nigeria’s messy tax system. The new Act seeks to merge multiple tax laws into a single framework a move that should, in theory, simplify compliance and strengthen revenue collection.

Yet, as with most laws in Nigeria, the test lies not in the intention, but in the impact on the people it governs…..Under Section 4(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the National Assembly has the clear power to make laws on taxation. However, that power is not absolute. Every tax imposed by the state must reflect the spirit of Section 16(2)(d) which mandates that the government must ensure the welfare of citizens and not impose policies that deepen their hardship….Taxation is not merely a financial tool; it is a social contract. The citizen gives, trusting that the state will use it to build roads, schools, hospitals, and peace. But when that contract becomes one-sided, when the government collects more than it gives back the line between reform and oppression begins to blur.

The Constitution envisions that balance, revenue must never outweigh responsibility. Section 17(1)(b) reminds the state that social order rests on equality and justice. Therefore, a tax system that burdens the poor while the powerful evade responsibility cannot claim to be just it violates both the letter and the spirit of our supreme law. Yes, Nigeria needs reform. But reform must wear a human face. A nation cannot tax its way out of poverty; it must build its way out of it. It is my considered view that the Nigerian Tax Act 2025 can be a milestone of progress if it is implemented with fairness, compassion, and accountability…At the end of the day, taxation is not just a fiscal tool it is a bond of trust between the government and the people. The Nigeria Tax Act 2025 will only succeed if it collects with fairness and governs with conscience….A nation cannot tax its way to prosperity; it must build it through justice and compassion. Let every reform remind us that revenue means nothing if it costs the people their hope.