Tax Ombud Resolves 25 Complaints, Expands Dispute Resolution to Rural Communities, Markets

■Nwabueze says online complaint portal to be launch as agency seeks wider public awareness

■Office identifies bureaucratic correspondence as major obstacle to 14-day complaint resolution

James Emejo in Abuja

The Tax Ombud/Chief Executive, Office of the Tax Ombud, Dr. John Nwabueze, said it has resolved between 22 and 25 of the 33 complaints received since its establishment.

He also said administrative bottlenecks remained a threat to its target of resolving taxpayers’ grievances within 14 days.

He spoke during an engagement with the media in Abuja, over the weekend.

Nwabueze identified delays in correspondence between the office and tax authorities as a major impediment to the speedy resolution of complaints.

He said the office was introducing dedicated desk offices in about 16 tax and revenue-generating institutions to eliminate bureaucratic delays and facilitate real-time communication in handling disputes.

The office also disclosed plans to expand its operations beyond Abuja through six proposed regional offices and partnerships with institutions with nationwide reach, including the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) and the Joint Revenue Board (JRB).

The expansion is expected to improve access to independent complaint-resolution services for market traders, small businesses and taxpayers in rural communities, many of whom may be unaware of the existence of the office.

Nwabueze said the office had received complaints from different states and economic sectors, including grievances relating to delays in tax assessments and assessments considered unsatisfactory by taxpayers.

He, however, acknowledged that the statutory 14-day resolution timeline had proved difficult to achieve in some instances because of delays in obtaining responses from relevant tax authorities.

According to him, correspondence between institutions could consume as much as one week, leaving limited time for examining complaints and facilitating resolutions.

He said, “When a complainant brings a case before us, we must reach out to the relevant tax authority. Getting communication back and forth sometimes takes a long time. We could lose as much as a week waiting for a letter to move from one office to another and for a response to come back.”

To address the challenge, he said the office had commenced arrangements to establish desk offices within approximately 16 tax and revenue institutions, allowing complaints and official responses to be processed without the delays associated with conventional correspondence.

Nwabueze said the office was also intensifying engagement with the JRB, whose nationwide institutional presence could provide an effective channel for reaching taxpayers outside major urban centres.

He added that discussions were ongoing with NIPOST on a proposed partnership to extend complaint-handling services to market traders and rural communities.

The tax ombud said the office was also planning six regional offices, with December as its target for commencement, subject to the completion of recruitment, infrastructure and other administrative requirements, as well as the necessary presidential approval.

He said the response from state governments to the proposed regional expansion had been encouraging, with states indicating their willingness to support the initiative.

Access to redress

Nwabueze disclosed that the office was almost ready to launch an online complaints platform, which would be available in different languages to make its services more accessible.

He said the platform was awaiting the necessary approvals and would provide Nigerians with a more convenient channel to understand the office’s mandate and submit grievances.

He also plans to deploy television, print and outdoor advertising to raise public awareness, acknowledging that limited knowledge of its existence remained a major constraint to its operations.

He said many of the complaints received so far had come through professional and legal channels, partly reflecting the low level of public awareness.

On the possibility of tax authorities rejecting the office’s recommendations, Nwabueze said its approach was to secure resolutions acceptable to both taxpayers and revenue authorities, rather than immediately resorting to litigation.

He acknowledged that either party could disagree with a proposed resolution but maintained that the office would continue engaging the parties to find equitable solutions.

Where disagreements persist, affected taxpayers could explore other available options, including further engagement through the appropriate channels.

Nwabueze stressed that the tax ombud was not established to cancel legitimate tax liabilities or shield taxpayers from their statutory obligations.

Rather, he said, its mandate was to address operational, procedural and administrative grievances arising from tax and revenue administration through an independent, impartial and non-judicial mechanism.

The office does not make tax policy or perform the functions of the courts, while its complaint-resolution services are provided free of charge.

He maintained that its intervention was intended to bridge the trust deficit between taxpayers and revenue authorities by ensuring that grievances were heard and addressed without unnecessary administrative or financial burdens.

“Our collective objective must be to move from disputes to solutions, from administrative friction to constructive engagement, and from distrust to confidence,” Nwabueze said.

He urged Nigerians to support the initiative, describing its guiding principle as bridging differences and building trust between taxpayers and tax authorities.