The perpetrators are not petty thieves. They are powerful crime bosses, crooked politicians and sophisticated syndicates with tentacles stretching across Southern Africa and beyond.

The construction mafia, illicit cigarette barons, criminal gold, coal and diesel cartels, and bent law enforcement officials are looting our country with impunity.

This is transnational organised crime on a scale we can no longer ignore.

At its core, illicit trade is the production, distribution and sale of goods outside legal and regulated channels.

That means products that evade taxes, dodge quality controls or are outright counterfeit.

Whether it’s a pack of untaxed cigarettes, smuggled alcohol, non-compliant electricals or fake medicine, every illegal transaction drains state revenue, undermines legitimate businesses and exposes consumers to unsafe products.

The numbers alone are staggering.

Illicit trade robs the fiscus of R100 billion every year. That’s R250 million a day stolen from honest, hard-working South Africans.

Illicit cigarettes alone strip almost R30 billion from the country annually, while illegal alcohol costs another R16.5 billion.

These are not victimless crimes. This is money that should be building schools, fixing hospitals and creating jobs. Instead, it vanishes into the pockets of criminals and their enablers.

The consequences are devastating.

While the syndicates grow fat on illicit profits, South African children are dying of hunger, unemployment is surging and millions of families are trapped in poverty.

Our national assets are being stolen before our eyes, and the state’s ability to provide services is being hollowed out.

Yet while the evidence mounts, our justice system moves at a glacial pace.

Criminals exploit every delay, every loophole, every weak point in enforcement to tighten their grip.

Billions of rand which should be securing our future are being siphoned out of the country through illicit financial flows.

This cannot go on. If we do not act, these hyenas will strip the country bare, leaving only a rotting husk behind.

South Africans deserve better. The fight against illicit trade is now a matter of survival and should be declared a national emergency.

Yusuf Abramjee is the founder of Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) and a leading anti-crime activist.

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The police also arrested 37 suspects of various nationalities during multiple takedown operations conducted in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal throughout the month of January 2025.

The seized counterfeit and illicit goods included cellphones and accessories, pharmaceuticals, cigarettes, toys, clothing and consumables.

These operations were led by the National Counterfeit Goods Unit, with the support of the provincial Counterfeit Goods Units, the Department of Home Affairs, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) Customs division and brand protectors.

A Mission Action Joint Operation Centre (MAJOC) roving team — comprising SAPS members from various specialised units such as the Tactical Response Team (TRT), Public Order Policing (POP) and SAPS drone pilots deployed in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal as part of Operation Vala Umgodi — also formed part of the operations.

While primarily focused on combating illicit mining, these teams also target other criminal activities within the provinces, the police said.

The SAPS said it remains dedicated to dismantling the illegal trade of counterfeit and illicit goods, which pose risks to consumers, harm legitimate businesses and undermine South Africa’s economy.

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