Mixed reactions to Ramaphosa lockdown level 3 announcement

While the DA wants the national lockdown ended to save jobs and the economy, the EFF believes the two metros in the Eastern Cape should remain on level 4.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Wednesday night that parts of SA with low numbers of confirmed Covid-19 cases would have the lockdown eased from level 4 to 3 at the end of May, with high-risk areas remaining on level 4.

The government would still engage relevant stakeholders to decide which areas would go to level 3, Ramaphosa said.

Reacting to Ramaphosa's address, Eastern Cape EFF chair Yazini Tetyana said Nelson Mandela Bay and Buffalo City Metro were “not ready” for level 3.

By Wednesday night, the Eastern Cape had 1,534 confirmed cases of Covid-19, with Nelson Mandela Bay accounting for 568 cases and BCM 446.

“NMB and BCM must go back to level 5. We have said it a number of times, these metros need to be locked because they are the epicentres.

“We cannot prioritise economic activity, that is for the privileged. The majority of people in the province are unemployed and rely on social grants.

“The priority should be preservation of humanity more than anything else. We will recover from Covid-19 one day,” he said.

DA interim leader John Steenhuisen said they wanted the economy and society opened to save livelihoods.

“We repeat our call for the national lockdown to end swiftly. It is not a rational strategy and has not been so for weeks.

“It is irrational and disproportionate to the scale of the risk that Covid-19 poses, relative to other risks. And it has not been supported by an adequate safety net for poor people and small businesses,” he said.

ANC provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi disagreed.

“Look at what America [US] has done. They have killed their people due to the stupidity of their leadership."

“The people of SA should see the DA for what it really is. They are refusing to be guided by the national command council and that is a very dangerous route,” Ngcukayitobi said.

Political analyst Ongama Mtimka said Ramaphosa's address was a government effort to maintain the trust of South Africans.

“He is begging for trust again from South Africans and wanting to maintain the initial consensus that the government received on its lockdown measures.

“The approach the government is taking won't be a one-size-fits-all for different metropolitan areas and regions. It is important for the government to maintain a cautious approach while acceding to some of the demands that are being made in a responsible manner.”

Another political analyst, professor Mcebisi Ndletyana, said the next two weeks would give the president enough time to make “decisive decisions” on the lockdown.

“They are trying to buy time to make changes in certain areas. So the hope is that by the end of May some areas will be safe to open. People are already being reckless and there are certain things he [Ramaphosa] needs to address,” Ndletyana said.

In the public interest, most of our coronavirus news isn’t behind our paywall, and is free to read. To support our mission of delivering award-winning, independent local news, subscribe from as little as R45 per month by clicking here.