Tokelo Khausela
THE Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance (SAAPA) wants to know what made the government review the Alcohol and Tobacco Levy Act of 2023.
The organization is arguing the review, which ultimately saw government reducing tax on tobacco and alcohol products, would result in an increase of alcohol and tobacco abuse in Lesotho.
SAAPA is a southern African network which promotes the harmonisation and acceleration of evidence-based alcohol policy development and implementation in the region.
The Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Retšelisitsoe Matlanyane, last week announced that government had decided to reduce tax on tobacco commodities from 30 to 15 percent, while for alcoholic products, the levy would be slashed by half from 15 to 7.5 percent.
Dr Matlanyane’s legal notice, which unveiled the new tax, noted the changes would come into effect from 1 October 2023.
The levy, according to the notice, was aimed at controlling the excess consumption of alcohol which had resulted in the ministry of health’s budget being overburdened from treating otherwise avoidable alcohol-related illness.
However, the chairperson of SAAPA, Thabo Mokhutšoane, said the reduction in sin tax should not have been made without extensive consultation with various stakeholders.
Speaking at a press conference held in Maseru on Tuesday, Mr Mokhutšoane said a decision of that magnitude needed input from interested parties.
“Lesotho is a signatory to interventions and plans that were adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO), so it is important to advise our government to take notice and comply. We should always be seen to be speaking in one voice,” Mr Mokhutšoane said.
“We have been siding with the government since it increased the tobacco and alcohol levies by 30 and 15 percent respectively, because that was in the best interest of the nation.
“However, we were surprised when the notice about the 50 percent slash began circulating. The alcohol industry stakeholders have indeed persuaded the government to reduce the levy.”
He further said they need to know what the levy was going to be used for.
“We are keeping an eagle eye on the government’s collection of levies. Our worry is that if they did not consult us when making amendments, what more when the money is collected?” he said.
Thuso Leino from youth movement, Bacha Shut Down, also spoke at the media briefing and lamented substance abuse in Lesotho, which he said was high and had become fashionable among the youth. He said their concern was the reduction of sin tax would increase consumption.
“The government must know that we are going to fight against the reduction. I know people are going to say we have been bought to destabilize the government, but that is not true.
“The revenue collected from the levy must not be hidden. We must know how it is going to benefit the youth. We also want a clear explanation on how the decision to reduce the levy was made overnight,” Mr Leino said.
