Telita Snyckers, former SA Revenue Service lawyer and author to a gripping exposé uncovering the dark underbelly of the tobacco industry, says the story of illicit cigarettes long precedes lockdown.
Certain products were deemed non-essential items and both alcohol and cigarettes were snubbed off the retail lists of items for purchase as a measure to reduce and manage the impact on the buckling health sector. In July, Ramaphosa sent consumers into a tailspin after reinstating the order to ban the sale of alcohol, this time with immediate effect, as there were identified links of the pressure added to the health sector, which already was under severe pressure.
This indicated the ban was backfiring, as smokers now paid a substantially higher price for different brand cigarettes, signalling an underbelly of a black market for tobacco products.