Nigeria’s Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, has disclosed that his involvement in the country’s far reaching tax reforms has attracted threats to his personal safety.
Oyedele made this revelation in Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital, while speaking at a governance colloquium organised to celebrate the fiftieth birthday of Hajiya Hadiza Bala Usman, the Special Adviser to the President of Nigeria on Policy and Coordination. The event took place on Tuesday and brought together senior government officials, policy experts and reform advocates.
Speaking openly about the pressures surrounding the reform process, Oyedele said driving major policy changes in Nigeria requires uncommon courage, especially when those reforms affect long established interests within the system.
“Reforms are hard, and tax reforms are even harder. You need courage. I receive threats simply for trying to fix a broken system,” he said.
Okay News reports that the tax reform agenda is one of the most ambitious fiscal restructuring efforts undertaken by the Federal Government of Nigeria in recent decades, aimed at improving revenue generation and strengthening public trust in governance.
Oyedele identified deep public mistrust in government institutions, weak tax compliance culture and limited understanding of how taxes translate into public services as major barriers slowing down implementation. According to him, these challenges have allowed misinformation to spread easily among citizens.
He explained that Nigeria’s tax revenue remains significantly lower than that of countries with similar economic profiles, making comprehensive reform unavoidable if the country is to meet its development goals.
Calling on Nigerians who understand and support the reforms to be more vocal, Oyedele warned that silence creates space for critics to dominate the national conversation with misleading narratives.
He stressed that many Nigerians wrongly believe the reforms are introducing new taxes, when in reality the changes are focused on reducing multiple levies and harmonising existing ones into a clearer and more efficient framework.
“There is suddenly a national awareness, and people say the government has brought taxes all over the place, when in fact what we are doing is reducing the taxes they have been paying and harmonising them,” he explained.
Oyedele also acknowledged that the reform process comes with serious political, economic and reputational risks, both for policymakers and for the government as a whole.
“You need the courage to push through. You need the courage to take risks, because it is very risky,” he said.
Despite facing online attacks and personal threats, he defended the reform strategy, describing Nigeria’s previous approach to taxation as ineffective.
“What we have been doing all my adult life with the tax system was a pain reliever. It has not taken us far. Now we are doing the surgery. It will come with pain, but it is the only right thing to do,” he added.
Oyedele expressed optimism about Nigeria’s future, noting that the current level of political will and public debate around fiscal reform is unprecedented. He urged citizens to remain committed, saying long term stability requires short term sacrifice.
The Federal Government of Nigeria officially began enforcing the new tax regime on Wednesday, January 1, 2026. The reforms are anchored on four major laws: the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025, the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Act 2025, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Act 2025.
