The South African National Defence Force (SANDF), in collaboration with the South African Police Service (SAPS), have executed a major illicit cigarette seizure worth R6 million.
Captain A Tamela reported for the SANDF that soldiers from the Durban Light Infantry Regiment’s Charlie Company were operating along the border between KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho on 18 July when they intercepted a suspicious white truck near Underberg. When searching the vehicle, they found 300 boxes of cigarettes, with an estimated street value of R6 000 000.
The driver of the truck and the passenger were taken to Evatt Police Station for questioning, and the truck was impounded.
“This significant interception not only serves to curb illicit activities in the region but also plays a crucial role in revenue collection for the government through the imposition of taxes. The commendable efforts of the Durban Light Infantry Regiment’s Company demonstrate their unwavering commitment to maintaining peace and order along the border,” Tamela concluded.
Police and soldiers regularly intercept illicit cigarettes on an almost weekly basis as illicit cigarettes account for nearly 60% of the market at present – up from just 5% in 2009. This is according to a University of Cape Town study released earlier this year.
The UCT’s Research Unit on the Economics of Excisable Products showed the total lost revenue to National Treasury (NT) from illicit cigarettes over the 2002-2022 period was a staggering R119 billion, reaching R18 billion in 2022. The majority of this accrued in 2010-2022 when R110 billion was lost. This, researchers Dr Nicole Vellios and Professor Corné van Walbeek sayid is due to the illegal cigarette market which started growing in 2010.
The illicit cigarette market comprised five percent in 2009, peaked at 60% in 2021 and decreased marginally to 58% in 2022, they said in a statement.
The main reasons for the massive growth of the illicit cigarette market were the five-month ban on tobacco sales in 2020 during Covid, which gifted the cigarette market to criminals as smokers switched to cheaper brands when their regular brands were unavailable; and the gutting of the SA Revenue Service under Tom Moyane, commencing around 2014, which resulted in a reduced capacity to collect excise on cigarettes.
