Ethical compliance outweighs short-term gains, says tax expert

A leading tax expert, Olayinka Oyebola, has urged tax practitioners across the country to prioritise ethical standards over short-term gains in their professional operations.

Oyebola, who is the Managing Partner of Olayinka Oyebola & Co. Consult gave the charge in a statement on Saturday, 16 May 2026, to congratulate members and practitioners under the aegis of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria on the successful conclusion of the institute’s 28th Annual Tax Conference in Abuja.

He stated, “The integrity of our profession rests entirely on the unwavering ethical conduct of its practitioners. We cannot afford to compromise on standards if we want to build lasting trust with the public and the government.”

The conference, themed ‘Tax Reforms and Global Relevance: Positioning Nigeria’s Tax System for a Sustainable Future’, was held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre between 11 and 15 May 2026.

Commending the relevance of the discourse, Oyebola remarked, “The theme of this year’s conference is not only apt but also highly critical. It serves as a necessary blueprint to scale up local practice, bridge existing regulatory gaps, and seamlessly align Nigeria’s tax architecture with global best practices.”

He also praised the leadership of the institute, saying, “I must commend the executive management of CITN for successfully hosting an event of this magnitude. It has once again proven that Nigeria is blessed with exceptional minds capable of shaping the future of global fiscal policy.”

Reflecting on recent international regulatory challenges involving his firm in the United States, the managing partner maintained that transparency remains the ultimate guide for global operations.

He noted, “In the course of global practice, challenges will arise, as we recently experienced in the United States. However, our team has taken valuable lessons from that incident, corrected the administrative hitches, and moved on after being given a completely clean slate by the appropriate regulatory authorities.”

Oyebola further warned practitioners to guard their professional reputation jealously against predatory entities within the financial ecosystem.

“We must remain vigilant and structurally sound in line with international best practices. I urge all tax experts in the country to be wary of individuals and entities acting as ‘sharks’, whose sole aim is to mislead, exploit, and derail innocent practitioners for selfish motives,” he cautioned.

In conclusion, he reaffirmed his firm’s continued collaboration with local and international regulatory agencies to promote transparency and strengthen industry standards.

“Our commitment to compliance remains non-negotiable. We are actively working in concert with relevant authorities and global stakeholders to ensure that tax practice in Nigeria is upheld to the highest standard without room for compromise,” Oyebola added.