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Cairo: When rumour had it that the Egyptian Parliament was considering a proposal to levy taxes on tobacco to shore up the public budget, Hafez, a governmental employee, dashed off to nearby kiosks and shops to stock up on packs of cigarettes.
Hafez, a chain smoker for nearly 20 years, bought as much tobacco as he could lay his hands on - and as his budget could allow.
"My hunch was right. Now I have a decent stock for the hard times ahead," he grins, as his gaping mouth reveals several decayed, yellow teeth.
On the night of May 5, the People's Assembly (the lower house of Parliament) approved a package of economic measures proposed by the government to finance a 30 per cent pay rise for public-sector employees, announced by President Hosni Mubarak in a Labour Day speech days earlier.
The increase in salaries and pensions, effective as of this month, will cost the public coffers around 12.5 billion Egyptian pounds (Dh8.5 billion), according to government officials.
Controversial steps
The controversial measures include increases in fuel and cigarette prices, and vehicle licence fees. Rises in tobacco prices range from 10 per cent for the local brands and 33 per cent for the imported luxury brands.
Particularly contentious are the hikes in fuel, which the public and opposition MPs have said will trigger another wave of price increases in this country of 76 million where around 40 per cent of citizens are believed to be living below the poverty line.
"Smokers will suffer as well," says Mustafa Hamed, a Cairo taxi driver. "I have been smoking two packs a day for more than 15 years now." According to the latest rise in prices of tobacco, local cigarettes have increased by 25 piastres per pack. For me, this means an extra 15 Egyptian pounds per month," Hamed, a father of five, fumes.
"I cannot kick this habit now. It soothes my nerves when customers haggle over fares - and this happens often now that the petrol prices have gone up too," Hamed told Gulf News.
Egypt has 13 million smokers consuming around 85 billion cigarettes, or some 613 tonnes of tobacco annually, according to a UN report released at a recent anti-smoking seminar in Cairo.
To Fadl Sabri, a clerk, the time has come for him to stop smoking once and for all. "I have just made this decision for health and financial reasons," says Sabri, who has been smoking for around 15 years.
"Doctors have repeatedly warned me against smoking because I have heart trouble. But now with cigarettes becoming so expensive, this decision [quitting smoking] is unavoidable anyway."
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