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, warning that it threatens Nigeria’s economic sovereignty and national security.
In an open letter to the Federal Government, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, NEF spokesperson Prof. Abubakar Jiddere described the agreement as a “dangerous tax data arrangement” that could expose Nigeria’s most sensitive financial information to foreign control.
“The MoU is more than technical cooperation,” the letter stated. “It is an unprotected gateway into Nigeria’s tax infrastructure, giving a foreign government access to information that could be used for economic manipulation or political interference.”
The elders pointed to France’s historical influence in Africa, which they said often led to long-term dependency, urging Nigeria not to repeat such mistakes. Jiddere said the deal is particularly risky given the country’s current challenges with insecurity, currency instability, and rising unemployment.
The NEF also noted that Nigerian tech firms are capable of managing the country’s tax infrastructure and criticised the lack of legislative safeguards that allowed the MoU to be signed without parliamentary approval. They urged lawmakers to pass data-sovereignty amendments before FIRS begins full operations in January 2026.
The forum called on the government to: terminate the FIRS–France MoU, keep all tax data under Nigerian control, engage local technology firms, and prevent foreign entities from processing or storing sensitive fiscal information.
“The Northern Elders Forum will oppose this deal with every moral, civic, and constitutional tool available,” the statement read. “This is no longer a policy issue; it is a matter of national survival.”
FIRS, however, insists the agreement is strictly technical and capacity-building, claiming that only aggregated and anonymised data will be shared, and operational control will remain with Nigeria.
The MoU, signed on December 10, 2025, is intended to enhance Nigeria’s digital tax administration using AI-driven audits, automated compliance, and real-time analytics.
The NEF’s warning has reignited debates over foreign access to Nigeria’s fiscal and digital systems, highlighting concerns about data security, economic independence, and national sovereignty.
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