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It is vitally important that South Africa addresses Covid-19 hotspots as they appear, because the country cannot afford to re-enter the lockdown, says Western Cape Prime Minister Alan Winde.
In a digital briefing on Thursday (Nov 5), Winde said he was concerned that several European territories had re-entered the lockdown, especially countries such as Germany, which had previously been seen as a prominent example in its Covid-19 response. .
“We have to avoid this, we have to make sure we don’t go into an additional lockdown (as) South Africa cannot afford it. Our economy cannot afford it, we are getting poorer, we are losing jobs and we need to recover now ”.
Winde said that the country’s economy can only recover and begin to regain jobs if it continually makes managing Covid-19 a “habit” and understands the risk areas.
“If we do things right, we can avoid that second wave and we can focus our energy on recovery instead of spending too much time managing and preparing for a second wave (of Covid-19 cases).”
President Cyril Ramaphosa will brief the nation next week on South Africa’s lockdown strategy around the coronavirus pandemic.
Presidential Minister Jackson Mthembu said on Thursday (Nov 5) that the briefing will be based on a cabinet meeting and suggestions provided by the National Coronavirus Command Council to be held later this week.
Mthembu added that the cabinet was concerned that South Africans have become increasingly indifferent in their response to the pandemic and are no longer following lockdown regulations.
“Cabinet is concerned that some people are behaving recklessly and irresponsibly as if Covid-19 no longer exists,” he said.
“The cabinet calls on all people in South Africa to continue to adhere to the health protocols of practicing social distancing, wearing masks in public and washing hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based disinfectant, and avoiding large meetings “.
Thsonono Buyeye, Nelson Mandela Bay’s acting executive mayor, recently said that the reintroduction of a strict lockdown on the subway, while not ideal, may need to be considered to help save lives.
“A tougher lock is not ideal, but to save lives the option may need to be re-explored as the numbers are increasing rapidly. In just one day this week, we had close to 400 new infections. Unfortunately, infections go with deaths and we have seen deaths in the country have surpassed the 19,000 mark, ”Buyeye said.
KwaZulu Natal Prime Minister Sihle Zikalala also warned that a return to a strict lockdown is in the cards, unless the country sees a decline in the number of daily coronavirus cases.
“Looking at the statistics, we can now safely say that we will definitely return to a hard lockdown if there is not an urgent and drastic change in behavior,” the prime minister said.
Read: Ramaphosa on South Africa’s Biggest Problems Including a Second Coronavirus Lockdown, Fraud, and Security Drones
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