Tax Bill: League of Northern Democrats tasks NASS to probe the version passed and the one assented to by President

By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja

A political group, the League of Northern Democrats, (LND) has written to the leadership of the National Assembly, calling for an immediately institution of a transparent investigation into the discrepancy between the tax bill passed by the legislature and the law gazetted and assented to by President Bola Tinubu.

The letter to the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Tajudeen Abbas by the LND demanding for the transparent investigation into the was confirmed in a statement on Saturday in Abuja by its Publicity Secretary, Dr. Ladan Salihu.

The LND made the demand for the investigation into the matter following the alleged alteration of a duly passed tax law and the National Assembly’s constitutional duty to act.

The League of Northern Democrats called for public laying of the two versions of the tax bill (the one passed by the National Assembly and the one gazetted and assented to by the President) before the Nigerian people for verification.

The League further urged the National Assembly to invoke its constitutional powers under Section 143 of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) to commence

impeachment proceeding, if the allegation is found to be true.

The LND, in its letter called on the National Assembly leadership, to:

* immediately institute a transparent investigation into the discrepancy

between the bill passed by the legislature and the law gazetted and

assented to;

*Publicly lay both versions before the Nigerian people for verification; and

invoke your constitutional powers under Section 143 to commence

impeachment proceedings without any delay if the allegation is

substantiated.

*Failure to act will not merely weaken Parliament, it will irreversibly damage

constitutional governance, reduce the National Assembly to a subordinate

appendage of the Executive and institute full -blown dictatorship in the country.

*History will judge this moment The Constitution demands courage.

Yours in defence of constitutional democracy.

The President, the LND maintained, has no constitutional authority to amend, modify, substitute or rewrite a bill passed by Parliament.

Continuing, the League said, “His (President:s) role is strictly limited to assent or refusal of assent Any deviation from this is an illegal usurpation of legislative

powers, a contempt of Parliament and a grave breach of the Constitution.

“Such conduct not only amounts to gross misconduct within the meaning of

Section 143 of the Constitution; being a serious violation of both the Constitution and the presidential oath of office, but also constitutes a serious act of dishonesty

“On the part of the President It is not a technical irregularity; it strikes at the very foundation of separation of powers and constitutional democracy”, it said.