Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) yesterday said the success of the ongoing tax reform will depend largely on implementation strategy, timing and public trust, rather than the strength of its legislative provisions. Founder and Chief Executive Officer of CPPE, Dr Muda Yusuf, stated this in Lagos yesterday via a statement while assessing the tax reform framework.
Yusuf described the reforms as sound, progressive and among the most ambitious fiscal restructuring efforts in recent decades, but warned that good policy design does not automatically translate into positive outcomes. He, however, noted history had shown that poorly sequenced and rigid implementation could undermine even well-intentioned reforms.
According to him, the ultimate success or failure of the tax reform will depend far more on how it is implemented than on the laws themselves. “Without careful sequencing, political sensitivity and economic realism, even wellintentioned reforms can trigger resistance, disrupt livelihoods and further erode public trust,” Yusuf said.
He stressed that tax reform should be seen as a process rather than a one-off event, noting that it must evolve with implementation feedback, economic conditions and social realities. Yusuf observed that the reform was unfolding under particularly delicate circumstances, as the economy was still grappling with elevated inflation, weakened purchasing power and the adjustment costs of fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms.
He added that households and businesses were experiencing reform fatigue, with a politically sensitive pre-election period approaching. “In this context, expecting full and simultaneous compliance across all sectors of the economy is unrealistic. “A rigid, enforcement-heavy approach risks undermining reform credibility before its benefits have time to materialise,” he said.
Yusuf acknowledged that the tax reform framework contained several pro-welfare provisions, including exemption of low-income earners from personal income tax and VAT relief on basic goods and essential services such as education, healthcare and agriculture.
He noted that small businesses were also granted relief from company income tax and VAT obligations, while incentives for priority and job-creating sectors aligned tax policy with Nigeria’s diversification agenda.
According to him, the rationalisation of multiple taxes, repeal of obsolete laws and improved coherence of the tax system address long-standing private sector concerns and could enhance investor confidence if properly implemented.
However, Yusuf said public resistance to the reform was rooted in lived experience, as many Nigerians associated past reforms with rising living costs and declining welfare, without corresponding improvements in public services.
