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By Philippa Larkin 
8h ago
JOHANNESBURG – The National Council of Liquor Merchants in a statement over the weekend asked the government to be allowed to continue selling alcohol off-site.
The country reported 14,000 new Covid-19 cases on December 23.
On Monday night, President Cyril Ramaphosa banned the sale of alcohol until at least mid-January, as he announced a risk-adjusted level 3 for the country.
The council said before the announcement of the ban: “A total closure of the sale of liquor would mean the end of the tavern market and the 250,000 direct jobs linked to the sector. The industry should be consulted on any restrictions.”
The National Treasury reports that the government lost R9.5 billion in alcohol and tobacco taxes during the first four months of the current fiscal year, from April to June, under the toughest blockade of Covid-19.
He called on the government to continue working with the alcohol industry to find mutually beneficial solutions on how to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in a way that can safeguard 1 million livelihoods that depend on the alcohol industry.
“We do not believe that a total ban on the sale of alcohol is a short-term or long-term solution to halt the resurgence and increase in the number of positive Covid-19 cases,” he said.
The council proposed that the government consider two options to curb the rise of the pandemic.
First, a measured curfew that restricted unnecessary movements of the general public while balancing the interests of the tourism sector, which depended on the availability of alcohol.
Second, the council said alcohol restrictions, if any, should provide for off-site sales to allow for home consumption and provide special dispensing for taverns to function as off-premises outlets. with restricted hours.
Lucky Ntimane, Liquor Trader Training Coordinator, said: “As liquor traders, we have observed with disappointment the lack of enforcement of control measures by some who have behaved in ways that are not patriotic. South Africans. They have not heard a call from the president to behave in a way that helps the country fight the second wave of the pandemic.
“We continue to ask our liquor merchants and the general public to observe Covid-19 regulations regarding the use of face masks at all times, to disinfect and wash our hands regularly, and to observe social distancing,” he said. Ntimane.
The National Council of Liquor Merchants said they understand the situation the country is in and the difficult decisions that the president and the government must make in the coming days.
However, he stressed that any decision affecting the industry should be discussed with him beforehand and his input should be considered before communicating any decision to the general public.
Alcohol restrictions earlier this year in South Africa hit the industry hard, damaging the supply chain and the hotel industry.
In August, Bloomberg reported that South African Breweries, a unit of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA, said it had halted plans to spend R5 billion on scheduled plant upgrades, glass maker Consol Holdings said it was suspending construction of a R1.5 billion production plant in the country. Heineken also said that it had stopped working at a R6bn brewery.
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