It was the way in which President Cyril Ramaphosa chose to open his address on Sunday night that indicated the tightrope he had to walk in making the tough choice to move SA back to alert level four.
“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb,” he said, quoting the late statesmen, Nelson Mandela.
During his first address in March 2020, Ramaphosa was visibly distressed about having to choose between lives and livelihoods.
In December, Ramaphosa delivered an emotional address during which he almost teared up. He told the Sunday Times: “So many people have died and you feel it, as though it was your own family member. So that has been a great concern and it does take a toll on around the world.
“I have seen a number of other leaders around the world who have also been taken over by emotion. We are human, I am also human, I am touched by the suffering that our people are going through,” said Ramaphosa.
On Sunday night, he spelt out the gravity of the Covid-19 Delta variant, announcing new measures to curb the spread of the “wildfire”, a move that will cost several sectors of the economy.
The good news is that the vaccines currently being used in SA work against the Delta variant.
But the bad news is that Ramaphosa had to shut down parts of the economy again in a desperate attempt at curbing the spread of the virus.
“In the end, the president didn’t have much choice,” said political analyst Daniel Silke in an interview on eNCA.
“It will severely affect unemployment in SA,” he said, adding that small businesses will feel the brunt of the restrictions, with the alcohol and restaurant industries worst affected.
“We didn’t have a word [from Ramaphosa] about any kind of relief,” said Silke.
However, “in all fairness, to the president, this is a particularly problematic variant. It has already caused great hardship, particularly in Gauteng.”
‘Twice as contagious’
Ramaphosa said there were several reasons why the Delta variant was so dangerous.
It is more transmissible — twice as contagious as the Beta variant, which means it can infect “far more people”.
“As with the previous variants, you can pass it on without even knowing you have it.
“Thirdly, there is now emerging scientific evidence that people previously infected with the Beta variant do not have full protection against the Delta variant, and may get reinfected.
“Fourthly, because it is much more contagious, the measures we have so far adopted to contain the spread of the virus may no longer be sufficient to reduce transmission.”
He said the variant came with many unknown factors.
“For example, it is not clear that it causes more severe symptoms. Preliminary data from other countries suggests that it is not more severe.
“Reports from some countries, including on our continent, also suggest that infections and clinical illness in children may be more common with the Delta variant, even as the overall rate of infection remains substantially lower than in adults. The rapid spread of this variant is extremely serious.”
The Delta variant has been detected in five provinces: the Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape.
He said the peak of the third wave looked set to be higher than the previous two.
“The first wave lasted 15 weeks. The second wave lasted nine weeks. We don’t know how long this one will last, but indications are that it could last longer.”
‘Be boring — wear a mask’
Ramaphosa urged all South Africans to adhere to preventive protocols, including basic sanitation and mask wearing.
He took a swipe at EFF leader Julius Malema, who contravened lockdown regulations by leading his supporters in a march to South African Health Products Regulatory Authority offices, saying: “It is therefore extremely distressing when political leaders launch personal attacks against such people for doing the job they have been assigned to do.
“Sahpra must be allowed to do its job without intimidation or political influence so that when vaccines are approved, the public can be confident that the vaccines are safe, of good quality and will work.”
Ramaphosa said many countries across the world were battling to get enough vaccines.
He urged South Africans who were eligible to register for vaccines, with people older than 50 next in line.
“There is evidence that the vaccines we are using in SA are effective against the Delta variant.”
Issuing a warning to those who are spreading fake news about the vaccine, he said: “You are spreading panic, fear and confusion at a time when we can ill afford it. The scientific evidence before us shows that vaccines work.”
The following measures were announced, for the next 14 days at least:
- All gatherings — whether indoors or outdoors — are prohibited. These include religious, political, cultural and social gatherings.
- Funerals and cremations are permitted, but attendance may not exceed 50 people and all social distancing and health protocols must be observed. Night vigils, after-funeral gatherings and “after-tears” gatherings are not allowed.
- Public spaces, such as beaches and parks, will remain open.
- A curfew will be in place from 9pm to 4am, and all non-essential establishments will need to close by 8pm.
- The sale of alcohol both for on-site and off-site consumption is prohibited.
- Leisure travel in and out of Gauteng will be prohibited. This does not include work, business or commercial travel, transit through airports or for the transport of goods. If you are currently not in your place of residence, you will be allowed to return home to or from Gauteng.
- Visits to old age homes, care facilities and other “congregant settings” will be restricted.
- Restaurants and other eateries will only be permitted to sell food for takeaway or delivery. This is because it is not possible for patrons to wear masks while eating or drinking in these establishments.
- The closure of schools and other educational institutions for the winter holidays will be brought forward. Schools will start closing from this Wednesday, June 30, and all schools will be expected to be closed by the end of the week, on Friday. Contact classes at tertiary institutions will end by Wednesday, June 30, with limited access to the institutions. Residences will however remain open.
Call on government to help affected industries
Relief needs to be provided for those sectors of the economy prohibited from trading or required to downscale such as the liquor, tourism, hospitality, sports, and events sectors, Cosatu said in reaction to the announcements.
“This relief needs to come from not only the Unemployment Insurance Fund, but also in the form of tax and rates holidays, loan and premium payment holidays from bank and insurance companies. Failure to provide relief is to condemn workers to jobs and wage losses, and businesses to total collapse.”
Government needs to do far better in ensuring enforcement of the regulations too, said the trade union federation. “There is no point in promulgating restrictions and still turning a blind eye to those who choose to wilfully ignore all these health and safety measures. Assertive measures are needed to monitor and ensure strict compliance by the liquor vendors, public transport operators and political parties.”
Taverners reacted with dismay at being deprived of an income for the fourth time without any financial safety net.
National Liquor Traders convener Lucky Ntimane said: “This comes as a hammer blow to some of our struggling members ... We don’t believe banning alcohol is the most effective approach. It will simply fuel the illicit trade in alcohol, which is already booming because of the previous bans.”
“Taverners have made a huge effort to ensure maximum compliance with the Covid-19 safety protocols and to follow liquor licence conditions to the letter. All of this hard work will now be undone as illegal operators step in to profit from the ban,” he added.
To date, AU member states have reported over 5.2 million cases and over 138,000 deaths from Covid-19.
The cumulative number of Covid-19 cases reported in SA on Sunday is 1,928,897 with 15,036 new cases reported. This increase represents a 26.9% positivity rate.
Gauteng accounts for the majority of new cases (66%), followed by the Western Cape (9%).
The total number of fatalities to date is 59,900.
— Covid-19 in numbers
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