The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has urgently called on the Federal Government to disclose full details of the recent digital tax reform agreement signed between the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the French government. In a strongly worded statement issued on Sunday by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC expressed support for modernizing Nigeria’s tax system but raised alarms over transparency deficits, risks to national sovereignty, and potential threats to citizens’ data protection.
ADC highlighted widespread public unease that the agreement could jeopardize Nigeria’s data security and expose critical economic intelligence to foreign exploitation. “We note the overwhelming concern that the agreement potentially endangers Nigeria’s data security and exposes strategic national economic information to foreign exploitation,” the party stated, adding that FIRS efforts to quell these fears have not reassured Nigerians. The opposition party criticized the rushed execution of the deal, declaring, “Tax matters are about business, not charity,” while questioning what benefits France derives despite FIRS claims of gains for Nigeria.
The ADC demanded explanations for signing such a pivotal pact without public disclosure, National Assembly consultation, or broad stakeholder input, warning it could undermine national security. It drew attention to West Africa’s shifting dynamics, where former French colonies are cutting neo-colonial links, yet remarked, “under the Bola Tinubu administration, Nigeria appears to have become more Francophone than the French.”
The statement invoked Nigeria’s local content policy, aimed at bolstering domestic industries and curbing capital flight, to challenge the preference for French partners over capable local financial service providers.
“These tax reforms should strengthen national institutions and build local capacity, not create new dependencies or hand over strategic control of our economic intelligence to external actors,” the ADC asserted, urging prioritization of homegrown expertise.
The party outlined specific demands including immediate full publication of the agreement, briefing the National Assembly, and commissioning an independent review of its data security, cybersecurity, and sovereignty impacts.
Ultimatum clear, it concluded: “The details of this closed-door arrangement must be published for all to see, or the agreement should be terminated.”
