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DA leader John Steenhuisen questioned why President Cyril Ramaphosa has not addressed the nation about the government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic in nearly three weeks.
The acting leader of the opposition party has asked the president for transparency, saying the first step would be weekly national speeches, as well as question-and-answer sessions with the media.
“Since his announcement of a move to Level 4 of the blockade, he has been missing in action and left it to a handful of ministers to communicate the National’s questionable decisions [Coronavirus] Command Council
“We call on the President to address the nation regularly, at least once a week, and that these reports should include an opportunity to answer questions from the media. We also ask that he release all Covid data – 19, together with the NICD [National Institute for Communicable Diseases] modeling you are using to justify continuous blocking, “he said.
On Tuesday, the country was on day 47 of the national closure, which moved to Level 4 on May 1.
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Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said Tuesday that the number of people in the country who tested positive now was 11,350.
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The acting district attorney’s leader, who called for an end to the blockade, also demanded that data be shared about the reasons for the continued blockade. He said this should include statistics on Covid-19 deaths by age, HIV status, and comorbidity.
“It must include the exact status of medical care and hospital readiness in each district and city. It must include full transparency about what triggers a move to a different level of blockade. And, more importantly, it must include a reason clearly defined and, therefore, the objective – of the confinement, “he said.
Steenhuisen added that Ramaphosa must acknowledge that it responds to 58 million citizens, not subjects.
“He has a duty to appear before them and explain not only what he and his government intend to do to protect lives and livelihoods, but also why. In other words, the reasoning, the data, and the model behind the blockade of the country, when experts in all fields are increasingly calling for a rapid end to the closure crisis, “said Steenhuisen.
READ | Ramaphosa struck with another letter questioning the legality of the NCCC
The DA’s call for a more transparent NCCC has been echoed by some high-profile advocates. In a letter to Ramaphosa, advocates questioned the legality of the NCCC.
The Presidency’s response to the letter has drawn more criticism of Ramaphosa’s transparency.
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