By Eseku Olufemi Samson
With the sweeping Nigerian Tax Reform Bill, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has now signed into law the audacious Regional Dawn Commissions Bill, effectively reintroducing regionalism, this time with a modern twist and without raising the usual dust. What once seemed politically impossible in Nigeria’s convoluted federal structure is now law and, remarkably, it sailed through almost unnoticed.
For decades, the very thought of restructuring or reverting to regionalism was met with fierce opposition, especially from the northern elite or cabals. These two concepts, ironically, were the very framework our founding fathers agreed upon at the dawn of independence.
While Nnamdi Azikiwe and his camp stood firm on national unity without compromise, Awolowo and Ahmadu Bello, though poles apart ideologically, both believed unity should accommodate diversity, with a right to secede if the union failed. Bello, in particular, emphasized mutual respect and understanding of Nigeria’s pluralism as the foundation for true unity.
After the failed 1966 coup led by young southeastern officers, the counter-coup opened the door for the northern military elite to dominate Nigeria’s political structure, after seeing that the attempt by the Ironsi-led military regime, tilted toward the Eastern region, dominating the new country, so why not the north, who now controlled that government and by extension, the whole country.
Whilst the regions within the country retained Bello’s language of unity in diversity, they implemented the opposite, consolidating power at the centre and suppressing regional autonomy. The military’s legacy of centralisation became the template for subsequent civilian governments.
That’s what makes the Regional Dawn Commissions Bill such a silent revolution. It creates legal frameworks for each region to establish development commissions, functioning almost like the defunct regional governments of the First Republic. They can now coordinate economic development, cultural promotion, infrastructure projects, and even negotiate regional partnerships. The icing on the cake? No constitutional amendment was needed.
Yet, while the Dawn Commissions Bill glided through relatively easily, perhaps because it seemed harmless or too technical for political saboteurs to weaponize, it was the New Nigerian Tax Reform Bill that faced the real battle. One of its loudest opponents was Senator Ali Ndume, who famously declared that the bill was “dead on arrival,” boasting that northern lawmakers would neither open nor read it. For many conservatives in the north, any attempt to centralize tax collection or redefine fiscal federalism was viewed as a Trojan horse for restructuring.
But the resistance didn’t hold. Thanks to persuasive voices from within the north itself, like Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, Senator Ibrahim Hadejia, and Rep. Sada Soli, who understood the long-term economic value of reform, the conversation shifted. More importantly, the intervention of Yakubu Dogara, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives and a respected Christian leader from Bauchi, was a game-changer. His appeal to reason, equity, and economic realism helped douse tensions and break down resistance within the conservative bloc.
Selling these reforms to the northern establishment was like serving “Èfó Ewúro,” the infamous bitter leaf soup. At first, it provokes a grimace. But as you continue to eat it, its hidden sweetness and medicinal benefits begin to shine and sip through the body system. Tinubu’s administration deployed technocrats, influencers, and insiders to explain how the tax bill would actually boost northern development, improve compliance, and fund much-needed infrastructure.
What’s even more remarkable is how quickly all this unfolded. The New Nigerian Tax Reform Bill and the Regional Dawn Commissions Bill became law within roughly nine months of Tinubu’s presidency. To put this in perspective, the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), a far less sensitive reform, took 24 years to pass, undergoing multiple versions and distortions that stripped it of its original intent. Compared to the bruising, decades-long fight over the PIA, Tinubu’s legislative victories feel almost surreal. At this rate, even the various regional cabals against these reforms, must have been dazed by the speed of the passage of Bill, not knowing what hit them.
Where the PIA had to be beaten into a politically acceptable shape, sacrificing key provisions along the way, these two new bills retained most of their core features. They didn’t just survive, they thrived. And unlike past reform attempts, which often pandered to sectional interests, these bills appear to chart a new course that balances unity with diversity, central authority with regional flexibility.
If well implemented, the Regional Dawn Commissions can serve as incubators for innovation, allowing regions to compete in healthy rivalry while collaborating on national priorities. Imagine a revitalised core Northern and Middle Belt agriculture zone, a Southeast technology corridor, or a Southwest cultural and creative & digital economy hub, all coordinated under their regional commissions.
This quiet return to regionalism, under the guise of “development commissions,” may very well be the blueprint for Nigeria’s long-awaited restructuring, done not with protest or pressure, but with policy and pragmatism. If Nigeria stays this course, it might not only reform its institutions but also redefine the very meaning of national unity. Sometimes, the most revolutionary acts are the quietest of reforms.
•Eseku writes from Lagos
effemmzy@gmail.com
Source: thesun.ng
