Takeaways and exercise, but no alcohol under level 4 lockdown

A phased reopening of the economy under level 4 of the lockdown would allow restaurants and takeaways to deliver food to customers around the country, trade & industry minister Ebrahim Patel said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, co-operative governance & traditional affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said people will be able to “exercise under very strict conditions ... but it will exclude any organised activity”, such as attending a gym. The only exception to public gatherings are funerals and work.

The ministers were speaking during a briefing on Saturday on how the altered lockdown regulations would affect businesses and day-to-day life.

Patel said reopening the economy too quickly could result in a “rapid rise” of Covid-19 infection, which would force a return to level 5. “The big focus must be on bringing the risk levels down,” he said.

Manufacturing would see a partial reopening, including children’s clothing, winter clothing, blanket manufacturing, computers, mobile phones, some car manufacturing, and the manufacturing of cement, construction material and hardware and stationery.

Retail and wholesale stores, regarded as a “big vector of transmission”, would also reopen, along with some mining activities and engineering, accounting and legal services.

“Restaurants and takeaways will be open for delivery only,” Patel said. This meant customers would not travel to collect food. Food would be delivered to customers. This would also create opportunities for a food delivery network in townships.

Alcohol sales will not be permitted under level 4.

Dlamini-Zuma said that under level 4 of the lockdown it would be mandatory for people leaving their homes to wear a mask. “When you leave your house you must have a cloth mask. It’s going to be mandatory using a cloth mask as you step out of your home,” she said.

Specialist masks would be reserved for front-line health workers but those without masks were encouraged to make their own, use a scarf or even a T-shirt. “You have to have your nose and mouth covered in public ... Nobody should have an excuse.”

The minister had a special word of caution for the elderly during the lockdown, even at level 4. “Those who are aged 60 and above must work at home and stay at home.”

She said older people and those with underlying medical conditions were particularly at risk if they became infected. “The younger you are the milder [the infection] it is.”

She urged the nation not to view the lockdown as some form of “punishment” that was damaging the economy. “It’s not the health measures that will destroy the economy, it’s the virus, the pandemic,” she said. - TimesLIVE

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