CIGARETTE prices have doubled to almost $8 per pack as the Department of Economic Planning and Development under the Prime Minister's Office issued the new price list which took effect yesterday.
The increase in cigarette prices stemmed from the latest amendment to the Customs Import Duties Order 2010 that imposes a tax hike on tobacco products.
The new price list, which was issued late yesterday afternoon, took effect immediately.
The Brunei Times obtained a copy of the new price list, which was posted on the walls of all stores and shops licensed to sell cigarettes.
Vendors interviewed by The Brunei Times said the official prices for cigarette brands distributed by IDS Borneo Sdn Bhd range from $6.30 per pack to $7.40.
Pricing for other brands has yet to be communicated to the vendors but reports of other cigarette brands being sold at varying prices were still circulating.
According to the suppliers, a meeting with the Economic Planning Unit was held over the past week to come up with the new pricing before supplies were redistributed to the vendors yesterday.
One vendor from a retail shop on Mile One in Jalan Tutong said the letter carrying the new prices came in late yesterday afternoon followed by a fresh supply of cigarettes.
According to the letter, the new prices were amended to take into account the tax hike sometime around November 6 following a meeting between both the Economic Planning Unit and wholesale distributors.
"We were expecting the prices to be this high since many of us estimated the price to be somewhere around that region," said Mostaqim, a shopkeeper who also got his fresh supply of cigarettes.
Customers who came in looking for cigarettes were pleased that shops were again stocked up with their favourite brands but were annoyed that the prices went up.
Shopkeepers at Sifana Supermarket in Jalan Muara also commented on the immediate effect the new supply of cigarettes brought in to their shop yesterday afternoon.
The shopkeepers were one in saying that with the new prices in place customers were grumbling over the higher prices compared to a week ago.
Mohd Sofian Hj Serbini who were among the customers seen purchasing cigarettes at a shop on Jalan Muara said that with the new prices already in, he was seriously contemplating on quitting the costly habit.
"With the new prices of cigarettes being so high, I now have to think carefully of my purchase since I could use the money to either buy fuel for my car or top up my phone credit," said Mohd Sofian.
Others were also heard making the same remarks with thoughts of cutting down or quitting weighing heavily on their minds.
Over the past week since news of the tax hike became public, vendors throughout the country were in short supply of cigarettes due to hoarding by customers trying to get ahead of the price hike as well as the undetermined retail prices.
As finding cigarettes became difficult, consumers became more resourceful by purchasing across the border.
Dear Editor,
ALL these complaints about the sudden imposition of new cigarette prices do not deserve attention.
The amendments to the law relating to customs import duties were done to help stop people from hurting themselves.
They are meant to make smoking expensive, they are meant to give smokers the impetus to realise that there really is no point in sticking to a vice that does no good to their health and the people around them.
Anyone who has access to the Internet and visits social media sites knows the noise that smokers are making against the imposition of new tax rates or the manner by which they were implemented.
Their point probably is that they think they deserve to be given sufficient time to prepare themselves for the increase in prices. But acknowledging this need to be properly informed about a policy that is meant to make it inconvenient for smokers to continue to smoke would have defeated the purpose of the government's decision.
What do smokers want from government? Do they want decision-makers in the government to advise smokers to stock up on cigarettes weeks before imposing a new policy so that they would not be immediately affected by the increase in prices? That would have been absurd from the perspective of policymaking on health.
The more inconvenience smokers experience, the better it is for the government's campaign to fight tobacco consumption.
It is the government's responsibility to help people lead healthy lives. If you don't like it that the government is being responsible, then fight the policy by shelling out more dollars for every packet that you like to burn.
Health Buff
Kiulap
NO ONE saw it coming. Effective November 1, the excise duty on cigarettes in Brunei was increased to 25 cents per stick. This is the latest amendment to the Customs Import Duties Order 2010 on tobacco products.
If you are a smoker, no doubt you are feeling the pinch; stocking up on the last night before the price was hiked, rationing the number of sticks smoked per day, etc. However, this could be the opportunity for smokers to consider stopping their smoking habit. Because when you quit smoking, you can say "goodbye" to the harmful effects of tobacco, and "hello" to cold hard cash.
THE HIGH COST OF SMOKING
Although new retail pricing of cigarettes has not yet been officially announced by authorities until probably sometime this month, many have assumed that the new prices would range between $8 and $10 per pack, about three times more than the old prices.
"An average smoker may smoke one pack of cigarettes per day. Let's assume that with the newly imposed tax already in effect today, a pack of cigarette at the nearest store would cost the smoker an average of $8," says Rozalinda Khani, a civil servant.
She has been trying to encourage her two elder brothers to quit smoking since they were in secondary school but has been unsuccessful.
"Assuming that the smoker will not increase his or her habit, but instead remain steady at one pack of cigarettes per day for an entire year, therefore, by multiplying $8 by 365 days, the result is a staggering $2,920 per year.
"If you were to average this monthly, you will have savings of about $243 per month," she says.
"You can spend that $243 you saved in a month for a fun-filled weekend shopping spree, and you can use that $2,920 from a year of abstinence for a year-end getaway in Hong Kong!" she muses.
THE POWER OF $10
With cigarettes now pricier, 25-year-old Sazali feels that it's time for him to quit the habit because he felt that wasting his money on cigarettes will put too much strain on his earnings.
"A pack of cigarettes used to cost me $2.50 for this one particular brand. There are 20 sticks in each pack, which means between 12 and 13 cents per stick. With the new tax, that would make the new price of a pack about $7.50 today, which means I will be chugging out my $10 note from my wallet more often for a fresh new pack," he says.
"Bruneians strongly appreciate the significant value of the red $10 note for their basic daily expenses. With just $10, you could get a half tank of petrol that could last you for three days, or a $10 worth of an Easi card that could last you for a week or less, or even your lunch in a single day," he adds.
A FATTER WALLET
Ramli, a sales manager working for a private company, is an ex-smoker. Quitting smoking some two years ago changed his life as well as his finances.
Although his decision to quit was at a time when cigarettes were still cheaper, it gave a huge impact on his spending habits.
"The best part of giving up smoking was the money I saved from spending on cigarettes, although I have to say I have never really seen that money I was saving, but it made me aware of how much extra cash I have in my wallet compared to my days as a smoker," he says.
Ramli says his average spending on cigarettes in just a year alone amounted to $800 at a rate of one pack per two days, which would have been enough for him to buy his wife a new phone as an anniversary gift.
"As I began to realise this, I got so much more addicted to saving money than the nicotine. I hardly ever experienced running out of cash close to the end of the month. It has been a great motivation for me, and my wife has never been happier." - The Brunei Times
1 comment:
Online smoke shop Thanks for a very interesting blog. What else may I get that kind of info written in such a perfect approach? I’ve a undertaking that I am simply now operating on, and I have been at the look out for such info.
Post a Comment