By Irene Kabakama
Mathu Kiunjuri, the new Managing Director of British American Tobacco(BAT) is willing to partner with URA in the fight against illicit trade to create a leveled ground for legitimate cigarette manufacturers.
Speaking at URA offices, where he made a courtesy call on Tuesday, Kiunjuri said that focusing on legitimate trade, his team will be working with URA to combat illicit cigarette trade in particular.
Kiunjuri, said that illicit trade has increased by 30% in August because in 2022 BAT paid a tax of UGX 92bn and in 2022 it reduced to UGX 42bn.
“There is no way our sales can decline by 40 % when our consumers are contented with the quality of our product. This is a clear reference on how the gravity on illicit is serious because smugglers are acquiring new tricks,” Kiunjuri asserted.
Kiunjuri noted that the BAT has invested in a destruction machine for cigarettes and other waste products. It will be launched in October. He also thanked URA for the already existing working relationship which has opened doors for trainings and information sharing.
He also requested for extension of the deadline of up to December 2022 to enroll on EFRIS. Currently, the BAT is using the web portal to capture their invoices.
John R Musinguzi, the Commissioner General URA, thanked the BAT for investing in a destruction machine which will also help URA incinerate seized items from smugglers. He also tasked the BAT team to share information of illegitimate manufacturers and traders with the URA regional managers to help curb trade in illicit products.
Abel Kagumire appreciated the team on performing well as Authorized Economic Operators and most importantly for maintaining their compliance levels. He assured the BAT team that URA is working with other government agencies like Uganda People ’s Defense Forces(UPDF) to fight the illicit trade through leveraging on the use of Non-Intrusive Inspection technology at the border points and field intelligence enforcement operations.
