'Does he think we are prisoners?': Mzansi on Cele’s call to be in bed by 9pm on New Year's Eve

31 December 2020 - 08:10 By unathi nkanjeni
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Police minister Bheki Cele says everybody must be in bed by 9pm tonight.
Police minister Bheki Cele says everybody must be in bed by 9pm tonight.
Image: Supplied

Police minister Bheki Cele's call for everybody to be in bed by 9pm on New Year's Eve has left many doing a double-take.

On Wednesday, Cele got tongues wagging with his claim that there will be no New Year’s Eve celebrations this year under the adjusted level 3 lockdown.

Speaking during an SA Police Service (SAPS) parade in KwaMashu, Durban, he declared that this year there will be “no December 31" and that people should be in bed by 9pm.

“We are experiencing what we’ve never experienced before. This time, there is no December 31. There is no tin-hitting. By 21:00, everybody ‘ulele’ (sleeping). Everybody must be in bed by 21:00,” said Cele.

The police minister said that there would be consequences for individuals who break curfew or are drunk.

“Make sure that you lock them in. Usually, you help them and show them home. This time we will give them a home. Our stations may be full, but we will make room for them,” he said.

On social media, many had a lot to say about Cele's " bedtime" for the country, asking whether he thought citizens were “prisoners” or his children who could be told when to have to go to bed.

Others claimed he was being “disrespectful” and should have encouraged the nation instead of using “scare tactics”.

Here is a snapshot of some of the reactions:


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