Welcome to Wednesday’s roundup of Nigerian newspaper headlines, accompanied by our advocacy-focused calls on issues that impact citizens.
1. Daily Trust: Amid uproar, Tinubu declares tax laws effective Jan 1
President Bola Tinubu has brushed aside calls for the suspension of the implementation of the tax laws, insisting that they take effect on 01 January 2026 as planned.
Our Take: If these tax laws must sail into 2026 at full speed, then lawmakers should dust off their oversight powers, civil society should keep the pressure on, and Nigerians should keep asking questions. If the government insists there is nothing to hide, then sunlight should not be a problem, after all, even taxes prefer transparency to abracadabra.
2. Daily Trust: Cooking gas: Over 20m households stick to firewood, charcoal over affordability
Daily Trust reports that over 20 million Nigerian households continue to rely on firewood and charcoal for cooking despite a decade of policy push, rising domestic LPG production and over $500 million in private investment, as affordability constraints and weak last-mile distribution stall the country’s clean cooking transition.
Our Take: If Nigeria is serious about clean cooking, then the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and state governments must move beyond targets and make LPG affordable and accessible at community level. After all, a country rich in gas but cooking with firewood is not in transition, it is simply rehearsing policy on paper while smoke fills the air.
3. Punch: 10 states plan N4.3tn borrowing to fund 2026 budgets
Punch reports that ten states are planning to source about N4.287 trillion from loans, bonds, grants, capital receipts, and public-private partnerships to finance capital projects in their 2026 budgets. Collectively, the states, including Lagos, Abia, Ogun, Enugu, Osun, Delta, Sokoto, Edo, Bayelsa, and Gombe, presented budgets totalling N14.174 trillion to lawmakers.
Our Take: As states line up trillions in fresh borrowing, state Houses of Assembly, auditors-general, and anti-corruption agencies must do more than applaud big numbers and demand strict adherence to approved budgets, transparent loan terms, and clear project timelines. Borrowing should fund visible development, not budget gymnastics, and citizens must insist on tracking every naira from loan approval to project delivery.
