The IMF’s recommendation that Nigeria introduce new taxes on petroleum products and telecommunications services has triggered widespread public backlash, with critics warning it would deepen hardship for millions of poor Nigerians even as the government insists the proposals are non-binding and won’t be adopted.
Nigerians have a message for the IMF — and it isn’t polite. The International Monetary Fund’s latest Article IV Consultation Report, which recommended introducing taxes on fuel and telecom services to boost government revenue, has set off a wave of angry reactions across the country.
As reported by Daily Post Nigeria, the backlash was immediate and fierce, fuelled by past negative experiences with IMF prescriptions stretching back to the dreaded Structural Adjustment Programme era.
The Federal Government moved quickly to douse the flames, clarifying through the Ministry of Finance that “those recommendations do not amount to government policy and are not binding on Nigeria,” and that any future tax decisions would follow constitutional and legislative processes. The government also confirmed that the VAT waiver on petroleum products remains in force and that the pre-2023 telecom excise duty has already been repealed.
But the assurances haven’t quietened the critics. Dele Oye, Chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics, argued that the proposals were deeply insensitive, noting that tax revenue had already grown by over 180 percent — from N10.1 trillion in 2022 to N28.3 trillion in 2025 — without the need for additional levies on struggling citizens. He warned: “The patient needs recovery time, not another surgery.”
Lagos tax lawyer Bolu Oyeniyi questioned the logic of introducing new taxes before plugging existing revenue leakages, warning that taxing telecom services would undermine digital inclusion and hurt financial innovation, while fresh fuel levies would push up transport costs and food prices — squeezing households already battered by inflation and a weak naira.
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