Various business associations object to proposed Tobacco Bill
JOBURG –– The proposed bill is, for obvious reasons, unrealistic in areas such as Alex.
Various businesses and industry associations have left it to the 11th hour to express their concerns about the proposed Tobacco Bill and are calling for the government to immediately scrap the bill before it even sees the light of day.
This was the major proposal from various organisations affected by the introduction of the bill whose consultative process came to an end on 9 August. The aggrieved organisations have warned the government that the proposed bill will hit the little guy hardest in its proposed parameters of smoking distances etc.
Their major bone of contention is that some of the measures proposed under the bill, which include a no smoking distance of 10 metres effectively put them and their businesses out of business, especially in the township environment where houses are ‘closely packed like sardines’.
The African Cooperative for Hawkers and Informal Business (Achib), Gauteng Liquor Forum, National Tourism Hospitality Association (NTHA) and the South African Spaza and Tuckshop Association are all calling on the government not to pass this law.
The Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill (Tobacco Bill), was published in May by the national Department of Health and the public is being asked to comment on it.
The bill seeks to ban smoking within 10 metres of any doorway, window or walkway and the associates are opposed to it, saying it’s inappropriate and an overregulation which will create many problems.
According to the cooperative, for laws to be generally obeyed, they need to take realities on the ground into consideration. The proposed bill is obviously unrealistic in this context and in the context of the organisation’s trading partners, Achib’s Rumbi Kangara said.
Compliance by hawkers, vendors and other informal businesses require laws that are realistic and recognised as such by the people affected by them, he added. “The fact that unrealistic regulations are often not obeyed or enforced does not mean that they are harmless and such laws tend to promote bribery and corruption.”
He said the rights of millions of South Africans were at stake should these proposed tobacco regulations come into effect. “Many people in our country are not okay with the proposed regulations since their rights as guaranteed in the Constitution will be negatively affected, violated and denied.”
The ban on point of sale displays, for example, will make it impossible for his constituency to sell tobacco products legally, and this ban serves no discernible health objective.
Fanny Mokoena, president of Gauteng Liquor Forum and NTHA, said one of the most contentious provisions of the bill is Clause 2, which bans smoking in public places. “The 10-metre ban is completely impractical… can you imagine finding such a place in Alexandra or Khayelitsha? In Alex, a smoker will need to walk outside the township to find a legal place to smoke a legal product. Houses in Alex are closely packed like sardines,” she said.
“The new law will put the lives of our patrons at risk. Customers could get raped, mugged or even killed walking to find a place where it is legal to smoke. Also, there are laws that say you cannot take your drink outside, so a customer will need to leave their drink behind, where it could be spiked with a drug.”
Rose Nkosi, president of South African Spaza Traders Associations (SASTA), said this bill is completely inappropriate saying their members should either be exempted from it entirely or it should be scrapped. “We do not comment in detail because the proposed bill is inherently flawed. The bill’s provisions cannot be applied or enforced in spazas and tuckshops because they are too small and most of their owners are too poor and unsophisticated,” said Nkosi.
Details: www.healthdepartment.gov.za
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