Premier wants total Eastern Cape shutdown to stop coronavirus spread

Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane on Thursday said that the constant relaxation of lockdown regulations was not helping the province in its attempts to flatten the curve.

The premier said he would soon lobby the national government to consider the possibility of enforcing a total shutdown in the province to stop the spread of the coronavirus, especially in the Eastern Cape’s rural areas, reports DispatchLIVE.

Mabuyane said that the province was testing and screening as many people as possible, but the constant movement of people, despite the national lockdown being in place, was negating the potential positive impact of what is effectively a national quarantine.

The premier said that the provincial government was extremely concerned, especially after Wednesday's Covid-19 updates had shown the province jump from 32 to 45 confirmed cases.

Mabuyane was speaking during a live online video press conference where journalists were invited to ask questions via video chat software.