The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has issued a ruling preventing the South African Revenue Service (SARS) from installing surveillance cameras in tobacco manufacturing warehouses.
The application was made by the Independent Fair Trade Tobacco Association (FITA) after a rule was introduced in August 2022 which allowed SARS to install surveillance at factories in a bid to combat illicit activity.
FITA said the new law is an invasion of privacy. The association represents at least 80% of the country’s licensed cigarette manufacturers.
Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, FITA President, Sinenhlanhla Mnguni, said SARS violates the constitution and creates privacy.
“Their law was arbitrary, and was not applied according to global standards anywhere in the democratic world. It was only applied in countries like Vietnam and China.
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“The court sided with us and said this is a blunt tool, not only does it help the tax collector collect information as far as his obligation from a tax collection standpoint, but it goes further than that, it collects everything that is visible to the camera.
“This constitutes a violation of privacy in relation to both employees and factor owners. It is a violation of employees who did not consent to 24-hour monitoring and with all kinds of information being made available to SARS,” Mnguni told the radio.
Meanwhile, SARS said it was losing billions in annual revenue due to tobacco tax evasion.
This may be a short-lived victory for FITA since the main application regarding the CCTV rule has not yet been heard.
IOL News
