Joe Phaahla addresses an audience in Kenya – Photo: GCIS
Joe Phaahla addresses an audience in Kenya – Photo: GCIS
In an era where distrust in government is just as rife as any virus, Health Minister Joe Phaahla should perhaps choose his words a little more carefully. In an interview with the Sunday Times this weekend, the Cabinet member suggested that he’d seek legal advice over ‘controlling population behaviour’ – once the State of Disaster ends.
Now, it must be stressed that Phaahla was speaking hypothetically: In weighing up the ‘what happens next’ question, the minister declared that any further virus mitigation measures would be covered under the National Health Act, after the State of Disaster expires. So far, it’s on the straight and narrow.
The minister of good behaviour? Phaahla looking at legal options
However, Phaahla reasoned that this shift in responsibility would essentially make him a ‘regulator’ for COVID-19 laws. Should this scenario occur, the ANC representative suggests that he’d need to seek legal advice, and find out if he could be ’empowered to regulate the behaviour of the population’.
Yeah, we’re wading through some fairly controversial waters here…
“If the bulk of [State of Disaster controls] have to be under the National Health Act, the Minister of Health would then be the regulator. Therefore, legal advisers would have to examine the act, to see if it empowers the Health Minister to regulate the behaviour of the population.”
Joe Phaahla
- Some people – shadow ministers included – aren’t best pleased with this statement:
Good morning to everyone except Joe Phaahla. https://t.co/GTQcRJzaMC
— Dean Macpherson (@DeanMacpherson) February 14, 2022
Health Minister adopts ‘safety first’ stance
Phaahla has stuck his neck on the line over the weekend, speaking just days after Cyril Ramaphosa promised to end the State of Disaster for good. However, the Health Minister – who barely flinched during the onset of Omicron – has taken a more cautious approach when it comes to ‘living with the virus’.
He stated that several measures will need to remain in place after the pandemic phase of COVID-19 ends, taking a swipe at the UK and its decision to drop all coronavirus measures. However, with vaccination rates topping 90% in Britain, their return to normality was, quite literally, given a shot in the arm by its pro-jab population.
