liquor inspectors western cape

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Watch: SAPS uncover a cache of beer buried among veggies [video]

The question is how many beers do you have to plant to grow a brewery?

liquor inspectors western cape

Image via Adobe Stock

Some South Africans are going to great lengths to acquire, protect and consume alcohol during the national lockdown forcing the SAPS to leave no stone unturned as they enforce regulations.

That apparently includes digging up vegetable patches and finding a cache of beer as seen in the video below.

Police and metro law enforcement are pictured digging up a vegetable garden and uncovering several bottles of Black Label beer buried among the mielies.

Watch police dig up a vegetable garden in search of beer

Police Minister Bheki Cele has stood by the ban on the sale of alcohol during the lockdown despite considerable push back.

Many have questioned the zeal with which police and other law enforcement have pursued those who consume or sell alcohol during the lockdown.

Cele has said on numerous occasions that the ban will not be lifted and has even posited extending the ban beyond the time of the lockdown.

Cele backs the ban

The police Minister points to a drop in violent crime and a reduction of trauma cases at hospitals as indicators that the ban is having a positive effect on the country.

“My first prize would be that we shut down alcohol, but I know we cannot do that. Nothing tells me that taking alcohol will make life easier,” Cele said earlier this month.

“For SA, alcohol has not been the only issue when it comes to regulations relating to the Covid-19. Murder has gone down in SA. Even in the butcher of the republic, the Western Cape, murder numbers have really gone down. The impact of the reduction of alcohol has had an impact on ordinary crime, especially violent crime.”

As the police confiscate more alcohol we have also seen an increase in the number of reported cases of law enforcement themselves, selling or consuming confiscated booze, further eroding any sense of goodwill between the public and Cele.

Alcohol ban: Why drinking hand sanitiser may soon land you in jail

Cele has plenty of supporters though, with a significant number of social media users coming out in support of the ban.

The sale of alcohol remains banned under the terms of stage four of the lockdown although a ban on tobacco products is set to be lifted in some areas.

Government have yet to advise when South Africans can expect to be able to legally purchase alcohol again.

Representatives of the liquor industry are currently weighing up their options for a legal challenge to the booze ban.