Latest news and press releases
Latest news and press releases
The following statement is issued by the South Africa Tobacco Transformation Alliance (SATTA), which represents the legal tobacco value chain. Illegal cigarette manufacturers are sucking the lifeblood out of…
Wednesday 28 April 2021 - THE explosion in illicit trade caused by South Africa’s lockdown bans on alcohol and cigarettes has grabbed the attention of the world. Major international…
Sunday 18 April 2021 - COPS have seized a massive truckload of illegal cigarettes from Zimbabwe, giving yet more proof of the full-scale price war raging between criminal operators…
Monday 12 April 2021 - GOVERNMENT policy has fuelled a massive explosion in South Africa’s illicit cigarette trade that is laid bare in a damning new report published today.…
Tuesday 9 March 2021 - EVERY tobacco company in the country should submit to a comprehensive official investigation in the wake of a damning new report that shows South…
Thursday 4 March 2021 – THE four suspects bust with fake Covid-19 vaccines in Gauteng must face the harshest jail terms, according to Tax Justice SA (TJSA). “Criminals exploiting…
Wednesday 24 February 2021 - FINANCE Minister Tito Mboweni’s big hike in sin taxes is another gift to criminals in illicit trade and another blow to legitimate tax-paying businesses…
Thursday 18 February 2021 - THE illicit cigarette trade is out of control in South Africa and tackling it should become a “national priority”, according to an important new…
Wednesday 17 February 2021 - ANY increase in ‘sin’ taxes in the annual Budget next week would backfire badly by enriching criminals in illicit trade, destroying livelihoods and even…
Friday 12 February 2021 - AN EXPLOSIVE new investigation has revealed how South Africa’s illicit cigarette kingpins are deeply entrenched in politically-connected cartels looting state coffers on both sides…
Friday 22 January 2021 – THE Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association (FITA) and its breakaway member Gold Leaf Tobacco (GLTC) must sign up to the war against illicit cigarettes that…
Thursday 21 January 2021 - TAX Justice SA (TJSA) today launches a five-point action plan to stop criminals in the illicit cigarette trade looting billions of rand needed to…
Wednesday 20 January 2021 - A BOMBSHELL exposé by Tax Justice SA (TJSA) has blown the illicit cigarette trade wide open and revealed the biggest and most brazen black…
Tuesday 15 December 2020 – CRIMINALS are laughing at the law as they rob billions from decent South Africans by selling illicit cigarettes in the world’s biggest black market.…
Friday 11 December 2020 – THE HIGH Court’s landmark judgment that the lockdown tobacco ban was unconstitutional and not necessary compels authorities to now crack down on the criminals…
Wednesday 9 December 2020 - AN URGENT investigation into smuggling at our porous borders is needed to stop criminals looting South Africa of millions every day, Tax Justice SA…
Friday 16 October 2020 – PRESIDENT Ramaphosa’s promised crackdown on the illicit economy should start with an investigation into the illegal activities of cigarette giant Gold Leaf Tobacco (GLTC)…
Thursday 1 October 2020 - POLICE, tax officers and trade regulators should conduct a full investigation into the activities of the Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation (GLTC) following its fallout…
Monday 14 September 2020 – TAX Justice SA (TJSA) welcomes an investigation by the Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association (FITA) into sales tactics by its member Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation…
Sunday 13 September 2020 – AN INVESTIGATION by Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) today exposes the dodgy tactics still being used by the biggest beneficiaries of the lockdown’s illegal…
Tuesday 8 September 2020 – ORGANISED crime syndicates are using gangland tactics to retain control of the cigarette trade they captured during the lockdown sales ban, Tax Justice South…
Saturday 15 August 2020 – THE long overdue lifting of South Africa’s lockdown prohibition must be accompanied by an urgent crackdown on the crooks it has enriched through illegal…
Friday 14 August 2020 – URGENT action is needed to tackle the corrupt syndicates who have grabbed control of the cigarette market during the 20-week sales ban, Tax Justice…
Thursday 6 August 2020 – PRESIDENT Ramaphosa should do the right thing and immediately lift the tobacco ban after the High Court reserved judgment following the Government’s laboured defence…
Tuesday 4 August 2020 – THE nation stands at a watershed moment with huge implications for the rule of law, our ailing economy and South Africans’ right to make…
Sunday 2 August 2020 – Tax Justice SA (TJSA) has written a letter to President Ramaphosa pleading with him to lift the tobacco ban as court papers emerge destroying…
Tuesday 21 July 2020 - THE tobacco ban lies in ruins this lunchtime after a new report destroyed the government’s reasons for the sales prohibition. The latest report by…
Sunday 19 July 2020 – CHILDREN are starving and livelihoods are being destroyed as the Government ignores science and pushes ahead with a prohibition that is turning criminals into…
Friday 17 July 2020 - TAX Justice SA (TJSA) is calling for an immediate lifting of the tobacco ban after a leading Government scientist today admitted there was “no…
Prohibition is enriching gangsters while robbing the nation is vital funds - by Yusuf Abramjee, 13 July 2020
Sunday 5 July 2020 – Tax Justice SA (TJSA) today welcomes an open letter to President Ramaphosa and his Cabinet in which tobacco industry players and retail outlets highlight…
Friday 26 June 2020 – Tax Justice SA (TJSA) today accuses Government of “running away from justice” and “destroying lives even when retreating” by delaying an urgent application to…
Tuesday 2 June 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) tonight welcomes the High Court judgment declaring lockdown regulations invalid and unconstitutional and urges the Presidency to lift the…
Monday 1 June 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) has welcomed the Presidency’s call for “economic patriotism” and urged for this to begin with a crackdown on the…
Tuesday 26 May 2020 – THE irrational and unworkable ban on cigarettes is helping the architects and agents of State Capture to evade justice. Tax Justice SA founder Yusuf…
Sunday 24 May 2020 – THE extension to the cigarette ban is a green light for criminals to continue looting South Africa at the expense of decent citizens’ lives,…
Saturday 16 May 2020 – A MAJOR new study by the University of Cape Town (UCT) shows that almost all smokers have been able to buy cigarettes during lockdown…
Wednesday 13 May 2020 – OFFICIAL government research shows that the lockdown ban on cigarettes is needlessly exposing millions of South Africans to the spread of Covid-19. Tax Justice…
Thursday 7 May 2020 - Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) is calling on citizens and law enforcers to be on their guard against criminals dealing in fake health products…
Wednesday 29 April 2020 - TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) condemns tonight’s announcement of an extension to the cigarette ban as “life-endangering economic sabotage”. TJSA founder Yusuf Abramjee says:…
Monday 27 April 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) is urging law-abiding citizens to join the fight against criminals looting our nation when cigarettes go back on sale…
Friday 24 April 2020 – Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) today welcomes the Presidency’s announcement of the easing of lockdown rules to resuscitate the nation’s economy. TJSA founder Yusuf…
Wednesday 22 April 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) today urges the President to immediately kickstart the economy before his R500 billion rescue package lands South Africans with…
Tuesday 21 April 2020 – Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) eagerly anticipates the Presidency’s announcement of coronavirus crisis relief measures tonight and urges bold steps be taken to protect…
Sunday 19 April 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) today urges Government to heed growing calls for a review of the “nonsensical” and “draconian” ban on cigarettes that…
Tuesday 7 April 2020 – THE lockdown ban on cigarettes is backfiring badly and endangering millions of South Africans it is supposed to protect, Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA)…
The cigarette ban is backfiring as the country loses money needed to fight the coronavirus - by Yusuf Abramjee, 09 April 2020
Thursday 2 April 2020 – TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) today welcomes the lifting of the lockdown ban on cigarettes sales in the Western Cape as a vital step…
Sunday 29 March 2020 - THE ban on the sale of specific goods during the coronavirus lockdown threatens to spread the virus and fuel illicit trade, Tax Justice South…
Country losing R100 billion a year, which could be used to improve social services for all - by Yusuf Abramjee, 11 March 2020 WE’VE all heard the argument that…
Monday 2 March 2020 - TAX Justice South Africa (TJSA) today called for bold new measures to urgently tackle the menace of illicit trade that is costing the nation…
We do not envy the job you have in delivering the Budget on Wednesday. Record unemployment, a stagnant economy and the growing prospect of a ratings downgrade: could the…
The day I heard the desperation of a nation living in fear - by Yusuf Abramjee, 01 February 2020
A PLEDGE by the South African Revenue Service (SARS) to crack down on the illicit economy is hailed today by Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA) as an important first…
A radical reform of the law is needed to ensure that crooks stealing billions of rand in taxes every year are sent to jail, Tax Justice South Africa (TJSA)…
Versions published in the Cape Times, the Mercury and Pretoria News. 11 December 2019 - We are the victims of tax criminals and it’s time we blew the whistle,…
A TAX revolt is not the answer to the corruption and criminality that is crippling South Africa’s economy, anti-crime activist Yusuf Abramjee said on Wednesday.
IT IS time for ordinary citizens to join the fight against criminals who are looting South Africa of R100 million every day, anti-crime activist Yusuf Abramjee said on Monday.
Anti-crime activist Yusuf Abramjee officially announced the establishment of TJSA on Monday by declaring war on the crooks who are robbing South Africa of tens of billions of rands…
Despite how hard it is to balance our budgets, the law-abiding among us know it’s only right that we pay what we owe to the state in order to…
ANTI-CRIME activist Yusuf Abramjee has backed Finance Minister Tito Mboweni in his support for SARS having an “intrusive” investigating unit.
Anti-crime activist declares war on tax crooks at the launch of a new campaign to lock up the criminals who loot South Africa of more than R100m every day.…