HARD-HITTING INVESTIGATIVE SERIES LAUNCHES, BLOWING THE LID OFF SA'S ILLICIT ECONOMY

A powerful new investigative video series launched at a high-profile event in Johannesburg yesterday, bringing the harmful, human costs of the illicit economy home to South African viewers. 

Someone Always Pays is an investigative series probing the country’s illicit-goods trade, exposing how these products enter supply chains, and then have devastating impacts right across society.  

The series was launched at an exclusive media event in Johannesburg, featuring key media, influential voices, and industry leaders.

The Someone Always Pays premiere marked the launch of the Your Choice Has Power campaign, an initiative by the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa (CGCSA) in partnership with a business task force, to raise awareness of the impact of illicit trade on consumers, retailers, and the economy, and to encourage behaviour change.

The event took place at Langhams Lifestyle Estate, and featured series lead reporter Govan Whittles, showcasing his powerful investigation into the illicit economy and its dangerous human impacts.

​Whittles shared firsthand reflections on the making of the series, key learnings about the trade in illicit goods, and behind-the-scenes experiences from his journey exploring this under-investigated part of society. ​

​“Someone Always Pays takes a harrowing look at the effect that illicit trade has on people’s lives,” said Whittles. “It also highlighted the impact it has on South African society. Illicit trade drives crime, it harms public health, it destroys businesses, and it undermines social stability.”

The launch premiered the debut episode of the Someone Always Pays series, looking at the fatal effects that bootleg alcohol can have, the trade in illicit fuel, and the rampant illicit-cigarettes economy.

“This hard-hitting series shows how trade in illicit goods has very real impacts on people’s lives and can even be fatal,” said CGCSA CEO Zinhle Tyikwe. “Future episodes will unpack some of the other highly destructive impacts of illicit goods, explaining how no matter how cheap a product might be, someone always pays.” 

A panel discussion after the premiere unpacked many of the effects of the illicit economy on society. Tyikwe pointed out that in South Africa, trade in illicit goods…  

• Endangers people’s lives  
• Robs businesses of income  
• Destroys jobs  
• Supports criminal networks,  
• Steals taxes, and 
• Undermines social services 

The size of South Africa’s illicit-goods economy has been estimated at around R1 trillion.

Tyikwe said that consumers had power, and that making better choices could help to fight the impact of illicit trade, and build South Africa.  

“Your choice has power,” said Tyikwe. “If you suspect goods might be illegal, don’t buy them, and report it to the authorities. When we choose to spend our money with legal businesses, we support the mainstream economy, and help to grow our country.”