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- Social media has been full of rumors that South Africans could face further restrictions from Covid-19 this week, similar to the lockdown seen in April.
- The meetings that led to an announcement of stricter regulations have yet to happen and are unlikely to happen this week.
- The current restrictions under the adjusted Level 3 lock expire on January 15.
Rumors have been circulating that South Africa is set to enter a hard lockdown again this week due to the rise in Covid-19 infections.
On Sunday, a message was distributed on social networks that quoted “a source close to the command council” saying that the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) had met “this morning planning how what measures to put to stop the continuous increase in positive cases “(sic).
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He also cites a part of the story that appeared in News24 last Sunday when the council met before President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a tighter shutdown last week.
The message further reads: “It is believed that the president will bring South Africa to level 5 of the blockade for a period of 7 days from midnight tomorrow” (sic).
However, the government spokeswoman, Phumla Williams, tweeted a screenshot of the message and said it was false.
She told News24 that there could not be any adjustments to the lock on Monday as the correct processes had not been followed. He added that unless there was a dramatic change in the situation, it was highly unlikely that Ramaphosa would address the situation this week.
There are certain meetings and consultations that need to be held before changes to lock levels are made, and these typically take a day or two.
She said:
The process as we have it on the monitoring of the Covid-19 process begins in the NatJoints (National Joint Operational Structure and Intelligence) where all [directors-general] and operational people who are monitoring various aspects sit down.
This structure normally meets on Sundays to prepare for the NCCC meeting on Tuesday. This council then makes decisions and these decisions are discussed when the cabinet meets the next day, before the president can make any announcements.
The cabinet only meets every two weeks, but special meetings can be called in exceptional circumstances, as happened last week when the NCCC met on the Sunday after Christmas, followed by a cabinet meeting on Monday, which allowed Ramaphosa to announce restrictions. to curb potential outreach super-events around New Years Day celebrations.
Reported Covid-19 infections passed the 1 million mark that Sunday when the meeting took place, and it became clear that these infections were increasing to the point that hospitals and healthcare workers were struggling to cope.
Williams added: “As we speak now, NatJoints has not met, so there is no NCCC planned for this week. Had it met, Tuesday would have been the NCCC.”
Unless “something important happens with the country that justifies it.” Williams said the meeting was unlikely to take place this week.
But the president is likely to make an announcement before Friday, January 15, which is the deadline for restrictions he announced last week, such as a ban on alcohol.
Rumors that South Africa will enter a Level 5 lockdown this week are therefore unfounded.
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