Midrand hawkers raise concern over proposed tobacco bill

Hawkers in Midrand have expressed concern over the proposed Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill of 2018.

The bill seeks to limit the display and accessibility of tobacco and, as a result, banning the sale of loose cigarettes which will greatly affect informal traders who thrive on single cigarette sales.

Wonder Maluleke, a hawker from Ivory Park leaves his home very early in the morning to make it to Noordwyk by peak hour. He said since he started operating as a hawker in 1993, loose cigarettes have been the best selling product.

“Loose cigarettes sell quickly and big. Many people cannot afford to buy a pack of cigarettes and they come to us because it is affordable for them to buy loose ones.

“I am married and have four children. The money I make from selling fruits, vegetables and snacks feeds my family. But cigarettes have generated more profit than anything else I sell. The proposed bill will hit our pockets very hard and business will be affected,” he said.

Maluleke was not the only one fearing the financial impact of the proposed bill. Bafana Makhonjwa from Kanana was unemployed for three years until he started selling loose cigarettes and snacks to motorists. “I couldn’t find a job and my parents had no money to further my studies. I started selling cigarettes and snacks by the roadside to motorists. It’s better than nothing. It has chased the wolf from the door as I make close to R150 on cigarettes alone, for a day. Banning sales of loose cigarettes will drive me back to poverty.”

Rumbi Kangara of the African Cooperative for Hawkers and Informal Business said given government’s declaration that job creation, especially by SMMEs, is the top national priority, it is critical for the realities of such businesses [hawkers] to be taken seriously.

“The proposed bill is, for obvious reasons, unrealistic. Compliance by hawkers, vendors and other informal businesses requires laws that are realistic and recognised as such by the people affected by them.

“For small retailers, informal traders, the potential loss of revenue could be enough to put them out of business.”

Kangara further said such laws tend to promote bribery and corruption. “They tempt and encourage police and inspectors to intimidate defenceless traders and demand favours from them.”