In response to growing public concern about the current tax reforms, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, who chairs the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, denied yesterday that the government intends to withdraw funds directly from bank accounts, calling the allegations “false, dangerous and capable of destabilising the economy.”
According to Saturday Vanguard’s reporting, Oyedele stated during a media workshop on the new unified tax law that the social media warnings were founded on ignorance and intentional disinformation.
“I want to be very clear: no government agency, not even FIRS or the CBN, has the authority to take money out of your bank account,” he said. No one is removing any funds from your account, regardless of the amount, be it 50,000 or 50 million. That is just not the case.
Funds Cannot Be Newly Seized
Oyedele clarified that the claim sprang from the assumption that the government had granted new enforcement powers due to the consolidation of important tax statutes into a single code.
He elaborated by saying that without a court-ordered garnishee, which he called “a long legal process that is almost never used,” there is no way to collect overdue taxes.
The government cannot “simply wake up and remove money,” he added, even in the most severe instances where a debtor refuses to pay hundreds of millions.
They have to evaluate you, let you know, hear your objections, wrap up the procedure, take you to court, and seek an order from the judge. Nobody can access your account unless you have that.
After working in tax administration for almost 30 years, he claims to have “never seen a single instance where money was removed from an account without due judicial process.”
Recalling the futile effort to recover even a single naira from accounts accused of tax evasion under former FIRS Chairman Babatunde Fowler, he brought up the idea of imposing post-no-debit orders.
It caused needless alarm, he said, and the process failed.
“No one is going to make the same error twice.”
A Raised Bar, Not a Brand-New Tax
According to Oyedele, a Tax Identification Number (TIN) is currently required for company accounts under the 2020 Finance Act, dispelling the myth that banks will start reporting all transactions.
According to him, “almost N100 million a year before any report is triggered”—the new reporting level of ¦25 million, which is double the previous threshold of ¦10 million—made necessary under the current law.
He made the statement that 98% of Nigerian bank accounts have less than ¦500,000.
There will be no reporting of those accounts. This clause has been around for five years, so it is hardly brand new.
Withdrawing funds will have a negative impact on the economy.
Constant speculation, according to the tax reform chair, might lead to dangerous panic attacks.
Fearful people withdrawing their money is something that can harm the economy rapidly, he said.
The government does not have the authority to debit accounts according to the law. So that we don’t cause trouble where none is, we need your assistance in educating the public.
Simplifying compliance, expanding the tax net, and reducing the burden on households and small enterprises are the goals of the reform, according to Oyedele.
He emphasized that the reform was not meant to penalize anyone. “The goal is to facilitate transitions, lessen the burden of double taxation, and bolster economic revival.”
The National Orientation Agency and his committee are collaborating on digital explainers and translations of the new law into the most spoken languages in Nigeria, he said.
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