Liquor authority cracks down on illegal traders

Date: 22 August 2019 By: 

More than 50 liquor outlets ranging from taverns and restaurants to lodges and distributors were visited in the Musina and Makhado area the past weekend as part of a liquor-awareness and law-enforcement operation.

The operation was conducted jointly by the National Liquor Authority (NLA) of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism (Ledet) and the Limpopo Liquor Board. The objective of the operation was to curb illegal trading of liquor, to create an awareness on the effects of alcohol abuse and to ensure that liquor-licence holders complied with the conditions of their licences.

The awareness campaign and enforcement operation were extended to malls and border gates of the two areas. Fines to the value of R10 650 were issued and three compliance notices were handed to those who failed to produce renewed licences for liquor trading.

Colonel Sello Motau of the SAPS National Liquor Control described the operation as a success and warned those who are trading liquor illegally. He said they would be arrested and face the full might of the law. Motau was confident that those who intended to trade illegally would fear the law and would ensure that they always stuck to the rules set out for them.

Motau further stressed the issue of making follow-ups, especially to all the liquor traders who received compliance notices, to ensure that they keep up with the law. “The liquor officers must keep on going back to check if the people do not start selling illegally and provide them with more information on how to register to be a legal liquor trader. We need to get to a point where we normalise the legality of trading, especially in deep rural areas. Most importantly, education and awareness by all stakeholders must be prioritised at all times,” said Motau.

The chief director of the National Liquor Authority at the DTI, Ms Prea Ramdhuny, said the operation was aimed at reducing the socio-economic and other factors of alcohol abuse to curb the impact of contact crimes resulting from liquor and to enforce compliance of the Liquor Act 59 of 2003. It was also intended to address the increasing number of unlicensed traders who do not adhere to their licence conditions, as required by law.

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