Cyril throws Hail Mary pass at battered SA in desperate push for recovery

Government has thrown everything at an ailing economy and a battered population in a desperate attempt to bounce back from the deadly violence and looting of two weeks ago.

The widespread civil unrest came on the back of the devastating coronavirus pandemic and an associated lockdown, which left many businesses, sectors and individuals hanging on by a thread.

Speaking on Sunday night, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the country was moving back to coronavirus alert level 3, thus allowing the sale of alcohol, small gatherings and interprovincial travel for leisure, among other eased restrictions.

Ramaphosa did this with a stern warning: while SA had seemingly passed the third wave of Covid-19, there were many areas where cases were rising, and now was not the time to let our guards down.

But the president quickly shifted focus to the devastating looting, violence and anarchy that hit SA two weeks ago.

We’re still counting the cost of this violence and coming to terms with the destruction it left in its wake. We have a duty to support those affected by this violence and make sure that it never happens again.

—  President Cyril Ramaphosa

Describing it as “deliberate, planned and coordinated actions of violence, designed to create conditions of unrest in our country”, Ramaphosa said it was vital that the government helped the businesses, industries and individuals hardest hit to recover as quickly as possible.

“We’re still counting the cost of this violence and coming to terms with the destruction it left in its wake. We have a duty to support those affected by this violence and make sure that it never happens again.

“We are taking decisive action now to secure the livelihoods of millions of people that have been threatened by both the pandemic and the unrest,” he said.

To this end, the government was bringing back the R350 social relief of distress grant — commonly known as the “Covid-19 grant” — until the end of March 2022.

The state was also contributing R400m to the Solidarity Fund’s “Humanitarian Crisis Relief Fund”.

In terms of business recovery, Ramaphosa promised that his government would ensure that the state-owned insurance company, Sasria, would be given everything it needed to “honour all its obligations and will provide whatever support is necessary”.

“In addition, however, some businesses that were victims of this violence may not have been insured,” he said. “Many of these businesses have lost everything, and will not be able to rebuild on their own. We will not abandon them in their time of need. We are therefore working to extend support to uninsured businesses that were affected by the violence. Government will set aside dedicated funds for this purpose, and we will soon announce a mechanism for these businesses to apply for support.”

On top of this, Ramaphosa said that the Unemployment Insurance Fund would “provide income support to all those employees who have lost jobs as a result of the recent unrest”.

Various tax incentives would also be offered, and PAYE payments would be deferred for three months — and the payment of excise taxes by the alcohol sector would be deferred for a period of three months “to ease the burden on the sector as it recovers”.

“These interventions are designed to extend as much relief as possible to individuals and businesses that are in need of support, without compromising our fiscal sustainability,” said Ramaphosa.

But while this was happening and with the country reeling from what he previously described as a “failed insurrection”, the president said it was crucial that SA didn’t lose sight of the battle it was fighting against Covid-19.

He said the virus was the “greatest threat to the lives and health of our people, as well as the recovery and transformation of our economy”.

“We need to continue to do everything in our means to contain the spread of the virus,” he said.

“The latest figures suggest that we have largely passed the peak of the third wave, though there are some areas in the country where we still need to be concerned because the rates of infections have not yet shown signs of decline.”

Just before he spoke, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said that there were 9,718 new Covid-19 cases recorded in the past 24 hours. There were also 287 new Covid-19-related fatalities recorded in same period, taking the total death toll to date to 69,775.

Ramaphosa said that the decision to move SA back to lockdown level 3 meant that:

• Curfew remains in place, from 10pm to 4am;
• Interprovincial travel for leisure may resume;
• Non-essential establishments such as restaurants, taverns, bars and fitness centres can open, but must close by 9pm;
• Gatherings will be allowed but will be limited to a maximum of 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors;
• Attendance at funerals and cremations may not exceed 50 people and all social distancing and health protocols must be observed. Night vigils and after-funeral gatherings are still not allowed;
• The sale of alcohol from retail outlets for off-site consumption will be permitted between 10am and 6pm from Monday to Thursday. Alcohol sales for on-site consumption will be permitted as per licence conditions up to 8pm;
• Schools will reopen from Monday, July 26; and
• It is still compulsory for people to wear a face mask that “covers their nose and mouth at all times when in public spaces”.

These regulations kick in from the publication of the government gazette, which was expected to be released at 12.01am on Monday.

Ramaphosa said: “As we ease restrictions, we must remember that infections remain high and that we need to continue to exercise caution.”