Discount Cigarettes News
May 15th, 2008 - 10:44:33
The Kentville tobacconist, who has been defying provincial law on displaying cigarettes, was charged Tuesday with improper display and storage of tobacco products. Mr. Gee, owner of Mader’s Tobacco Store, is the first to be charged under the province’s new laws prohibiting the display of cigarettes. He was ordered last February to comply with the regulations governing tobacco vendors or be charged under the Tobacco Access Act. At the time, he was given 30 days to comply. "I was sort of expecting it, but I was hoping they would change the regulations so I could do my job," Mr. Gee, 63, said in an interview. "I feel saddened and disappointed in the system. I always prided myself on being a reasonable person, but the people I’m dealing with are not reasonable; they’re extremists." Mr. Gee has been selling tobacco products from his small family-owned shop on Aberdeen Street for 32 years. But the laws governing the sale of tobacco have been getting progressively stricter. While he removed his store window displays, as required under the law, he refused to abide by the new regulations passed last December requiring him to remove all in-store displays. He was also ordered at that time to stop selling other items in his tobacco shop, including newspapers, gum, chocolate, soft drinks and other products. Under the act, tobacconists are permitted to sell tobacco and tobacco-related products only. He has not complied with that order either but has so far not been charged. "Why can’t I just do my job?" he said. "Tobacco is a perfectly legal product in Canada. It’s still legal to smoke and it’s legal to sell tobacco." He said his shop has generated millions of dollars in taxes to all levels of government over the past 30 years. Mr. Gee said he will plead not guilty when he appears in Kentville provincial court June 16. He will hire a lawyer and he expects to win his case. He was charged a few years ago for refusing to keep cigarettes behind locked glass doors. He was acquitted in that case and believes that will happen again. "I have faith in the system," he said. If he does win, it could set a legal precedent and throw the province’s tobacco regulations into disarray. But if convicted, he faces a maximum fine of $10,000. He could also lose his tobacco vendor’s licence for up to two years. "I don’t see why I can’t win," said Mr. Gee. "If I don’t win, I think our country as we know it is in deep trouble." He believes buying and smoking tobacco should be a personal choice. Mr. Gee has received support from smokers and non-smokers. Letters to the editor of The Chronicle Herald have been mostly supportive of Mr. Gee’s right to display and sell cigarettes. People walk into his store almost every day to express their support for his fight with the government, he said. He plans to set up a legal defence fund to help defray the court costs. © Copyright 2006 by DiscountCigarettesBox.Com Top of Page |
