President issues caution, but good news too

SOUTH Africa’s national state of disaster will be extended until mid-December, President Cyril Ramaphosa said last night, as he announced normal alcohol trading hours would be allowed along with flights from all foreign nations to support an economic recovery.

At the same time Ramaphosa cautioned that the number of Covid-19 infections in the Eastern Cape had shown an alarming increase of 145% in the last fortnight.

Hence the government would implement its resurgence strategy, and redouble community health interventions in Nelson Mandela Bay metro and other hot spots in the Eastern Cape, the president said.

“Interventions include primary health care outreach teams to intensify contact tracing, daily community mobilisation, ensuring the readiness of health facilities, and being ready to respond to possible clusters outbreaks.”

Ramaphosa said unless the rapid increase in transmission in the province was contained, it would be “a matter of time” before it spread to the Western Cape and the rest of the country.

He pointed to the reintroduction of tough lockdown restrictions in Europe and pleaded with South Africans to avoid a second wave by respecting health protocols and refraining from behaviour that could trigger a transmission rates surge.

“I’m asking you to do what we all know must be done,” a visibly tired president said.

“I have been increasingly getting concerned and alarmed by what I have been seeing on social media and even on television where people are holding big parties, gatherings and social events as though the virus does not exist.”

Ramaphosa said South Africa’s only salvation after a year of sadness wrought by the pandemic was to rebuild the economys.

The weekend and after-hours restrictions on alcohol trade would be lifted and the country’s borders would be reopened to travel from all countries, albeit it with Covid-19 precautions in place.

He confirmed that the special

Covid- 19 Temporary Employer/ Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) would be extended for another month.“

Following extensive discussions with our social partners, the UIF will extend the Covid-19 UIF Ters benefit scheme to 15 October 2020.“

But he struck a sombre note in calling on the nation to honour and remember the 20,011 people who had succumbed to the disease. |