Western Cape Premier says hard lockdown ‘must be averted’

Alan Winde, in a digital briefing on Thursday, made it clear that he was no advocate of another hard lockdown for South Africa, claiming that the country ‘could not afford’ another set of tight restrictions.

Could we get another hard lockdown in South Africa?

The Western Cape Premier was speaking ahead of an address from Cyril Ramaphosa. The president is set to address the nation about lockdown next week. Although a return to a higher Alert Phase isn’t likely to happen, we are expecting the head of state to lay out some ground rules – namely, to tell people they must avoid “COVID complacency”.

There has been a general, but somewhat anecdotal, trend in people failing to keep their distance and no longer wearing masks. Jackson Mthembu is the Minister in the Presidency, and he warned citizens “to take this threat seriously”.

Alan Winde on ‘second wave’ fears

Winde has echoed these calls, imploring locals to maintain the high standards of compliance seen earlier this year. He did, however, state that any stricter lockdown measures would ‘undermine’ the economic recovery, both locally and nationally:

“The best way to prevent a spike of infections, or the second wave, is to change our behavior. We need to continue to wear our masks, keep a safe, 1.5-metre distance from others, and regularly wash our hands – with soap or to-use sanitiser.”

“We have to avert another lockdown, we have to ensure that we don’t go into a further lockdown (as) South Africa cannot afford it. Our economy cannot afford it, we are getting poorer, we are losing jobs and we need to recover now.”

“If we get things right then we can avert that second wave and can focus our energy on recovery, instead of spending too much time on managing and preparing for a second wave of infections. If there is a major ‘wildfire’ of COVID-19 in the Western Cape, and additional restrictions are imposed, we will fundamentally undermine this recovery.”

Alan Winde

1. The Western Cape has not witnessed increase in Covid-19 cases in latest 7-day-rolling-average, but vigilance remains essential. #WCDigicon pic.twitter.com/S8m1Eo1hRf

— Premier Alan Winde (@alanwinde) November 5, 2020