North Coast smokers pay dearly for black market cigarettes 

While the sale of cigarettes continues to be banned during lockdown level three, the truth is those who smoke are still smoking.

Despite no evidence that smoking makes you less able to cope with Covid-19, South Africa is one of only three countries worldwide to have banned cigarettes during the pandemic (along with Botswana and India).

To date neither government nor the World Health Organisation (WHO) have released evidence on how smoking has impacted the virus.

On the North Coast, smokers might not be puffing their favourite brand of cigarettes anymore (some are even rolling rooibos) but getting a pack of cigarette is not that difficult, if you are willing to cough up the cash.

Our reporters scouted the illegal vendors in Ballito, Tongaat and KwaDukuza town to find out what was available and for how much.

A few of the brands available include, D’s, Pacific, Carvela, CK, Voyager and Craven A.

• In KwaDukuza and Tongaat you can get a loose cigarette for R5 (normally R2 or R2,50), a single packet of 20 cigarettes for R65 (normally R45) and carton of 10 packets from R650 to as much as R1400 (normally between R400 and R500).

• In Ballito, when lockdown started you could buy an illegal “no name brand” carton of 10 packets for R250, but as lockdown progressed the price rose to the current R550 or more.

In KwaDukuza CBD it took less than 10 minutes to find a cigarette ‘dealer’.

A store owner in King Shaka Street was able to point us in the direction of a dark alley opposite his shop.

“Sure brother, you need the stuff?” said the dealer. He offered us a carton of 10 packets for R650.

Next we followed a lead to Dawnside but police had got there first and shut her down. A restaurant owner admitted she had been selling cigarettes under the counter but believed someone had reported her to the police.

“They (police) came and took all the stuff I had, they even took my matches. I know I am not allowed to sell it, but people used to come here in the morning, you could see they were struggling with the addiction and it felt bad not giving it to them, knowing I could help,” she said.

She told us that her neighbour had also been arrested for selling cigarettes.

“Someone must have reported him because the police went straight to a locked room where he was hiding the cigarettes.”

In Tongaat it was more difficult to find sellers but there were plenty of loose cigarettes for sale.

None were keen to point us in the direction of larger quantities.

In Ballito, smokers told us they were fed up with the “ridiculous prices” and had started rolling their own.

One smoker said he had bought tobacco for between R65 and R70 a packet, Rizla rolling papers and a rolling machine, all on the black market.

Another Ballito smoker said although it was difficult to get Peter Stuyvesant, a popular brand, it was possible but you would “pay through the nose”.”

A single carton of Stuyvesant cigarettes used to cost R40 but now it’s being sold for R100 or R120 and the cheaper brands that used to cost R10 a packet of 20 now go for R60.”

Do you want to receive news alerts from The North Coast Courier via WhatsApp? Send us a WhatsApp message (not an sms) with your name and surname to 061 718 4438.