South Africa NDZ

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA – APRIL 01: African National Congress NEC member, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma during the special meeting of its National Executive Committee at Saint George Hotel in Irene on April 01, 2019 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images/Phill Magakoe)

State of Disaster extended AGAIN – but how long can it go on for?

Dlamini-Zuma has spoken: The seemingly ‘eternal’ State of Disaster isn’t ending any time soon, after it was extended yet again this weekend.

South Africa NDZ

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA – APRIL 01: African National Congress NEC member, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma during the special meeting of its National Executive Committee at Saint George Hotel in Irene on April 01, 2019 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images/Phill Magakoe)

Whatever you got up to this weekend, you probably didn’t do something that would affect around 60 million South African citizens. The only exception to this general rule of thumb is Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, after the COGTA Minister officially announced that the national State of Disaster would be extended yet again.

State of Disaster extended – how long will it last?

The emergency powers, which allow the government to keep lockdown regulations in place, will now extend into their 21st month – and the regulations will either expire or be renewed on Wednesday 15 December. The announcement was made by Dlamini-Zuma in the latest Government Gazette, to very little fanfare.

However, a number of South Africans have grown gatvol with this process. COVID-19 cases are at the lowest numbers they’ve been in a very long time. Only a handful of new infections, hospitalisations, and deaths are being recorded, and for many casual observers, there has never been a better time to scrap the State of Disaster laws.

Frustrations over lockdown regulations starting to surface

These regulations are somewhat problematic, as they are free from Parliamentary scrutiny and bypass the norms of legislative approval. After the announcement of the extension, a number of social media users vented their anger.

Dlamini-Zuma extends regulations: When will the State of Disaster expire for good?

The government has been clear in its reasoning for keeping the State of Disaster in place: They want to have a higher vaccine uptake in place before restrictions are lifted for good, and what’s more, members of the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) are wary that a FOURTH WAVE of infections may occur over the festive season.

Should new cases skyrocket, those in charge would seek to lean on their emergency powers, and reintroduce tougher levels of lockdown to stem any potential COVID-19 outbreaks. With just 33% of the population fully vaccinated, the jabs themselves could struggle to prevent the disease from becoming prevalent in SA once more.