Northern Elders Demand Immediate Termination of FIRS–France Tax MoU
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has called for the immediate termination of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and France’s tax authority, the Direction Générale des Finances Publiques, warning that the agreement poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s economic sovereignty and national security.
The elders made the demand on Sunday in an open letter addressed to the Federal Government, the Senate and the House of Representatives, describing the MoU as a “dangerous tax data agreement” capable of exposing Nigeria’s most sensitive economic information to foreign control.
The letter, signed by the NEF spokesperson, Prof. Abubakar Jiddere, argued that the agreement goes beyond technical cooperation and represents what the forum called “an unprotected gateway into the heart of Nigeria’s tax infrastructure.”
“The Northern Elders Forum writes today with grave concern and an overwhelming sense of patriotic duty,” the letter stated. “Nigeria stands at a crossroads—one that threatens the very pillars of our economic sovereignty, national security and collective dignity as an independent African nation.”
According to the forum, the MoU exposes Nigeria’s tax data to a foreign government at a time when the country is grappling with insecurity, economic pressure and rising foreign interest in its digital and financial systems.
“Yesterday’s signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Federal Inland Revenue Service and the French tax authority is not a harmless technical collaboration,” the statement said. “It is a direct, unprotected gateway into the heart of Nigeria’s tax infrastructure.”
The elders warned that granting France access to Nigeria’s tax data could undermine the country’s fiscal independence and place its economic future at risk, citing what they described as France’s controversial history of economic and political influence in parts of Africa.
Jiddere noted that several African countries have, in recent years, sought to dismantle French influence after decades of what he termed economic manipulation, extractive policies and political interference.
“Wherever its influence has taken root, African countries have spent decades struggling to reclaim economic independence,” he said. “Nigeria must not walk into the same trap with open eyes.”
The forum further argued that the agreement comes at a particularly sensitive time for Nigeria, with the naira under pressure, unemployment high and security challenges persisting across several regions.
“The FIRS France deal is not aid. It is an
Entry into our economic bloodstream,” the statement added.
The NEF also referenced warnings by Dr Segun Adebayo, a national advocate on data protection and fiscal independence, who had reportedly cautioned against such arrangements in a keynote address titled Protecting Our Tax Sovereignty and during subsequent engagements with the National Assembly.
The forum urged lawmakers to urgently review the agreement and take legislative steps to protect Nigeria’s tax data and economic autonomy.
As of the time of filing this report, neither the Federal Inland Revenue Service nor the Federal Government had issued an official response to the concerns raised by the Northern Elders Forum.
