March against ‘tobacco criminals’

THE Food and Allied Workers Union and other civil organisations were due to invade the streets of Pretoria today to march against the illicit trading of tobacco products.

Participants were expected to convene at the Tshwane Events Centre on WF Nkomo Street early in the morning and start marching to the National Treasury on Church Square from 11am.

The union, civil organisa- tions and legal tobacco manufacturers want to use the mass action to convince Minister of Finance Nhlanhla Nene to stop “tobacco criminals”.

The union started a campaign under the hashtag #NotJustAJob to highlight the plight of those who could be out of work if the illicit trading of tobacco persists without government intervention.

It claimed the “tobacco criminals” were raking in billions in unpaid taxes by selling cheap and fake cigarettes in South Africa.

Union spokesperson John Dominique said: “We’d like individuals to join our march and fight this illegal trade of goods, as it affects us all.

“When we lose billions due to smuggled goods, the economy suffers and jobs in the legal and tax compliant industry are negatively impacted.”

Illegal and fake products also threatened the health of smokers because the manufacturers were not always safety compliant, he said.