A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abdulsammad Dasuki (PDP-Sokoto), told the House on Wednesday that the tax laws now in circulation do not match the bills lawmakers debated and approved.
Standing under Order Six, Rule Two, on a Point of Privilege, Dasuki said his legislative rights had been breached because the text of the gazetted laws differs from the versions recorded in the House Votes and Proceedings and the harmonised copies adopted by both chambers.
After reviewing the documents over three days, he said he obtained the gazetted copies from the Ministry of Information and found inconsistencies. “I was here, I gave my vote, and it was counted, and I am seeing something completely different,” he told colleagues.
Dasuki stressed the issue was not a motion but a constitutional concern. He asked the Speaker to direct that all relevant papers — the harmonised bills, the Votes and Proceedings of both chambers, and the gazetted copies — be presented to the Committee of the Whole for full scrutiny.
He warned that allowing laws different from those passed by the National Assembly to be published would “undermine the integrity of the legislature” and violate the Constitution. “This is a breach of the Constitution,” he said.
Speaker Abbas Tajudeen said he had taken note of the Point of Privilege and assured members that action would be taken on the matter.
