Johannesburg - A High Court preservation order against Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation (GLTC) is a watershed moment in the battle against organised crime groups who are looting South Africa on an unprecedented scale, according to Tax Justice SA (TJSA).
“This is a huge breakthrough in the battle against the illicit cigarette trade that robs South Africa of R19 billion a year,” said TJSA founder Yusuf Abramjee.
“For over a decade, GLTC have been the prime suspects as South Africa’s illegal cigarette trade has grown into a national menace of devastating proportions.
“SARS under Commissioner Edward Kieswetter deserves huge credit for taking this massive and brave first step. We must all now help and support them as they pursue both our money and the people who have been taking it from us.
“Prosecuting authorities must now ensure that the masterminds of this industrial-scale theft are brought to justice and feel the full might of the law. Lock them up,” he said.
On Friday, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) welcomed the North Gauteng High Court’s preservation order in terms of section 163 of the Tax Administration Act No. 28 of 2011 against Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation and its directors, Simon Rudland and Ebrahim Adamjee.
The order will prevent the Zimbabwean-owned company from dissipating realisable assets and thereby frustrating the collection of taxes.
“We are waiting for more details from SARS about the precise implications of the order, whether GLTC can continue trading and whether a curator will take over,” Abramjee added.
Meanwhile, Kieswetter said that they had been investigating and clamping down on the illicit economy focusing on tobacco, gold and fuel industry over the last year, and this was one of the many enforcement steps executed by SARS.
“SARS is harnessing its capabilities to make non-compliance with legal tax obligations hard and costly to those who are engaged in this criminal pursuit,” he said.
“The preservation order is obtained to prevent realisable assets from being dissipated thus frustrating the collection of taxes.”
Kieswetter added that the conduct of non-compliant taxpayers was depriving the Government of legitimate resources to the prejudice of both the State and the South African public.
“In aggressively addressing this scourge, SARS will continue to pursue its mandate without fear, favour or prejudice,” he said.
The TJSA also recently launched its FightBack Charter, calling for emergency sanctions against transnational organised crime groups looting South Africa of its assets and infrastructure.
“For too long, it has seemed that TJSA is a lone voice raised against smugglers, counterfeiters and their fellow tax dodgers in the illicit economy,” said Abramjee.
“Gold Leaf was the leading member of the Fair-Trade Tobacco Association (FITA) and is still suing me personally for R50 million for alleged defamation.
“Less than a year ago, Gold Leaf’s lawyer Raees Saint declared on the BBC that illicit trade allegations against his company were a conspiracy – at a time when GLTC was obviously already under massive investigation.