Democracy can’t be a victim of coronavirus

The coronavirus crisis is one for which there is no handbook. There couldn’t be one, because a catastrophe of this nature – both physiological and human-made – hasn’t happened in living memory. So, every day is like an evolving drama script. It should come as no surprise, then, that there have been contradictory messages from the government, which has sometimes created the perception that ANC leaders are making it up as they go along.

This sort of governance shortcoming can be accepted in a national struggle against a common enemy – which Covid19 is. In the beginning of the lockdown – which started on 27 March – many people lent their support to President Cyril Ramaphosa and his team.

That, too, was understandable: in time of crisis, it is only natural for human beings to look around for a leader – and for them to unquestioningly follow that leader.

Everyone was asked to stay at home, minimise movement and contact with other people to avoid spreading the virus and to help delay the time when the infection peak would arrive at hospitals – and possibly overwhelm them.

People even accepted stringent rules, including bans on exercise outside the house, the sale of alcohol and tobacco products … because everyone was “in this together”.

But, the national spirit of unity has been on the wane.

A significant reason for the decline in commitment from citizens to adhering to lockdown regulations is that they have been under them now for six weeks – and are getting restless.

Another major factor in growing dissent is the fact that the government and its law enforcers have shown themselves to be heavy-handed in implementing regulations which are, in many case, capricious.

The conduct of some ministers in enforcing them has been inconsistent and, at times, even appeared malicious.

Yet, in the past few days, there have been ominous signs that government is being seduced by the power which it has arrogated to itself under the disaster regulations.

When two lawyers wrote to Ramaphosa seeking assurances that the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) in charge of the emergency was not violating the constitution, they were met with dismissive arrogance by Presidency director-general Dr Cassius Lubisi.

He said the lawyers’ conduct amounted to “putting in jeopardy all measures taken to save South African lives and ensure security of public health”, as well as not being in keeping with their positions “as officers of the court”.

Another attempt by tobacco companies to gain access to minutes of the NCCC discussion at which it was decided to continue with the cigarette ban was rebuffed on the grounds that the information is “classified”.

Those two responses, taken together, indicate a worrying tendency towards authoritarianism.

This goes beyond the “Big Brother knows best” type of dictatorial rule, towards the way the Stalinists used to run the Soviet Union.

The use of the phrase “enemy of the people” – defined as anyone challenging authority – was a common way to silence actual or potential criticism.

We are not saying that those who question the lockdown regulations are headed for SA’s own “gulags” and we are not denying that we are facing a huge crisis.

But democracy must not become another Covid-19 victim.