The criticism trailing the tax data sharing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the relevant French authority, Direction Générale des Finances Publiques, may not end anytime soon, as the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) has also entered the fray.
The party warned that the agreement poses security, sovereignty and economic risks to Nigeria. PRP National Chairman, Falalu Bello, in a statement yesterday, described the MoU on digital transformation and information exchange as a dangerous move that could expose Nigeria’s tax infrastructure and fiscal data to foreign influence.
The opposition party argued that granting any level of access to a foreign government over Nigeria’s tax systems undermines the country’s economic independence and weakens its ability to design policies that reflect national interests.
According to Falalu, foreign-controlled digital platforms could open the most populous black nation to surveillance, data exploitation and economic sabotage, while offering external powers strategic leverage in future trade negotiations, investments and loan agreements. He described the action of the Bola Tinubu-led administration as retrogressive and neo-colonialist, insisting that Nigeria’s tax reforms and digital infrastructure must remain fully domesticated.
The party called for the immediate termination of the pact, and urged the Federal Government to rely on indigenous institutions and technology firms such as the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Interswitch, Flutterwave and Paystack to drive digital tax reforms.
Falalu insisted that homegrown institutions such as the NIBSS, Flutterwave, PayStack, Interswitch, and others should be contracted to develop and manage “our tax technology,” stating: “all foreign-led proposals, including the FIRS-France MoU, must be terminated immediately.”
Beyond the MoU, the PRP also raised concerns over the appointment of Xpress Payment Solutions Limited as a Treasury Single Account (TSA) collecting agent, warning that the move could replicate what it described as the cartel-driven revenue collection model previously associated with Lagos State.
The party questioned the need for a new collecting agent in the face of improved revenue performance and demanded transparency on the ownership structure of Xpress Payment Solutions, the commission it earns, and whether the appointment complied with open and competitive procurement processes.
It further called on the National Assembly to urgently enact data sovereignty safeguards ahead of the commencement of the new tax law next month, warning that Nigeria’s tax data remains the backbone of the economy, and must not be surrendered to foreign control.
BUT the FIRS, in a statement by the Technical Assistant on Broadcast Media to the Executive Chairman, Aderonke Atoyebi, defended the MoU, describing it as a standard international cooperation framework that focused on advisory support, knowledge sharing and capacity building.
The agency also dismissed allegations that the agreement sidelined local technology firms, maintaining that indigenous platforms remain central to its operations.
On the concerns surrounding Xpress Payment Solutions Limited, FIRS said Nigeria operates a multi-channel revenue collection system involving platforms such as Remita, Quickteller, Etranzact, Flutterwave and XpressPay, insisting that no single private entity controls government revenue collection.
