The chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, says more than 90% of Nigerians working in the informal sector do not have the capacity to pay taxes.
He said most of those operators are not businesspeople with profit margins — they are mere survivors.
“This is the reason why Nigeria has ended up introducing multiple taxes,” Oyedele told journalists, influencers, and public analysts at the weekend. “We are trying to chase people in the informal sector now and then.”
He explained that data available to the committee does not support the common belief that the government’s untapped revenue is hiding in the informal sector.
“More than 90 per cent of operators in that sector are just there for survival,” he said. “They are just trying to find how to put food on the table from one day to another. They have no capacity to pay taxes.”
Oyedele gave examples many Nigerians could relate to. “If somebody is roasting corn by the roadside, and has customers all day, they are still poor. If somebody is a vulcaniser or wheelbarrow pusher, even with steady customers, they are still poor. They have no capacity to pay taxes and should not be taxed.”
He said President Bola Tinubu’s directive was clear: poverty and capital should not be taxed. “We should not tax seeds but wait for the fruits,” he added.
Reforms Target Accountability and Fairness
Oyedele explained that the reforms under the new tax laws were meant to correct years of inefficiency, multiple taxation, and leakages in the system.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), he said, collected over ₦20 trillion in taxes last year and is on track to surpass that this year — but under tighter scrutiny.
“These new tax laws have put in place more structures, more provisions, and more requirements to hold them to account,” he said. “There are even instances where officers face personal liability if they fail to do their job properly.”
Oyedele said the reforms have strengthened governance and accountability. All taxes now go directly into the Federation Account — not special accounts managed by the FIRS — to prevent manipulation and diversion.
On corruption, he admitted that taxpayers, tax officers, and consultants have all contributed to tax malpractice in the past.
“These new tax laws have now made provisions to address all the parties,” he said. “Trying to evade taxes now is more expensive. Consultants are being monitored. There is now registration for tax agents, and we track their activities. For tax officers, the risks are even higher.”
Oyedele said the government believes the new framework will make tax administration fairer, more transparent, and development-driven.
But the big question remains: will Nigeria’s tax reforms finally relieve the poor, or just rearrange the burden on new shoulders?
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