The company has blamed the growing illicit tobacco trade, but advocacy group Civic Root argues the closure exposes deeper failures by the state to enforce existing laws and protect workers.
The announcement comes as Parliament considers the Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill. Civic Root has warned that tougher regulations, introduced without effective enforcement, could worsen job losses and strengthen illegal markets rather than protect public health.
Civic Root Advocacy Managing Director Siyabulela Jentile described the closure as devastating for workers and their families. He said behind the corporate decision were real people who would lose stable incomes in an economy where employment was already scarce.
Jentile argued that the main problem was weak enforcement of existing regulations, which he said had allowed the illicit trade to grow unchecked. He added that laws that existed only on paper were not real regulations and did not serve justice for communities affected by deindustrialisation.
On the proposed tobacco bill, Jentile said Civic Root rejected it in its current form because it introduced sweeping restrictions without credible enforcement plans. He warned that measures such as plain packaging could make it easier for illegal products to flood the market, as consumers would struggle to distinguish legitimate brands.
He also raised concern about proposals that could prevent informal traders from selling cigarettes, saying this would hit street vendors who relied on such sales to support their families. Jentile said policy must be evidence-based and must consider the economic realities of communities.
While acknowledging the health risks associated with tobacco, he argued that public health goals could not be achieved through laws that were not enforceable. Weak enforcement, he said, would fuel criminal markets and undermine both jobs and health outcomes.
More than 230 direct jobs and over 1 000 indirect jobs in processing, packaging and transportation could be affected by the closure. Jentile warned that the impact would ripple through Heidelberg’s local economy, hurting small businesses and households that depended on the factory.
He called on lawmakers to reconsider the bill and balance health objectives with the need to protect workers and informal traders in a country already facing an unemployment crisis.
–ChannelAfrica–
