COVID-19 LIVE UPDATES | Smokers livid: 'NDZ has overruled the president'

April 30 2020 - 07:34

Smokers livid as ciggies banned under level 4 lockdown

Smokers are fuming over Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma's announcement on Wednesday night that the sale of cigarette and tobacco products will not be allowed under level 4 of lockdown, which will start on Friday.

The co-operative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) minister said the sale of cigarettes was opposed by about 2,000 people who engaged the government on the lockdown regulations.

“We took into consideration and debated the matter and decided that we must continue as we are when it comes to cigarettes and tobacco products and we shouldn't open up the sale,” said the minister, adding that the reason for the continued ban is “health-related.”

April 30 2020 - 07:25

Over 270,000 South Africans sign petition against ban on cigarette sales

Over 270,000 South Africans have signed a petition against the ban on the sale of cigarettes, while the tobacco industry prepares to mount a legal challenge.

In response to the government's apparent U-turn on Wednesday night, the Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association (Fita) said: "Consulting with our attorneys and senior counsel on the urgent court application first thing in the morning. Let a court of law adjudicate on this issue once and for all."

The petition, started by Bev McClean, was started when smokers were given one day's notice of the ban ahead of the lockdown on March 27.

April 30 2020 - 07:00

Wits experts suggest healthy people under 50 be allowed out of lockdown

With the country on the brink of an adjusted lockdown, two local experts have proposed a model in which healthy people below 50 would basically come out of lockdown, while those above 50 would remain at home.

It is a “hybrid” approach that falls somewhere between the hard lockdown we have seen so far, and the “herd immunity” approach adopted in the early days of the pandemic by the UK.

April 30 2020 - 07:00

Mzansi responds to school plan: 'Cancel 2020 academic year'

South Africans have expressed concerns about the department of basic education's readiness to resume its academic activities on May 18, following a virtual address by the department's director-general Mathanzima Mweli.

Pupils in grades 7 and 12 will be the first to be phased in. 

Addressing parliament's basic education oversight committee, Mweli detailed protective measures put in place to ensure the safety of pupils, teachers and other staff.

April 30 2020 - 06:30

Campaign demands water for dozens more communities

The South African Food Sovereignty Campaign has called for the withdrawal of charges against 10 leaders from Coastal Links, who were arrested on April 14 when they convened to discuss how to meet the water needs of the Centane area in the Eastern Cape.

The campaign also wants dozens of parts of the Eastern Cape and Limpopo to be treated as drought disaster areas. It says small-scale farmers in those communities should be given urgent support to ensure farming continues.