Ekurhuleni’s executive mayor Mzwandile Masina said measures have been put in place to contain and manage the spread of Covid-19 during his State of the City Address (SOCA) on Wednesday.
Masina supported his statement with the first act he took to protect the city by cancelling all SOCA public viewing areas, and by restricting the number of guests attending the event.
The SOCA was digitally live-streamed on the City of Ekurhuleni’s social media channels.
During his address he said people should remain calm and not panic.
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“People should not panic and follow the guidelines issued by the government with regard to keeping high standards of hygiene.
“We remain vigilant in monitoring the situation, and we are ready to work with the national and provincial governments to combat the spread of this dreaded virus,” said Masina.
He further said the City would play its part in making sure people were informed about Covid-19 at all times.
“In the meantime, we have set up a joint operation centre which is monitoring the situation, and giving the administration a blow-by-blow account of the situation.
“At this point I wish to appeal to the community to work with us as we manage the pandemic,” pleaded Masina.
He said so far, Ekurhuleni had four confirmed cases of the virus.
The GCN spoke to the MEC of Community Services, Nomadlozi Nkosi, who supported the mayor’s statement of the City’s readiness to combat Covid-19.
She also stressed the importance of hygiene to the people.
“We encourage our residents to take all necessary precautions.
“If they don’t have sanitiser in their homes, they must wash they hands regularly with soap and water,” said Nkosi.
She added that residents needed to be calm, and must not panic.
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“People need to be calm and just follow precautions, that way we can combat this virus.
“The City is ready to protect its residents,” said Nkosi.
“In our health facilities, we will set up sanitisation stations at the entrances of all clinics.
“Further training of clinical staff will continue in order to ensure they are suitably prepared to deal with potential Covid-19 cases.”
She further said the City would educate residents about the virus.
“The City will be rolling out a public awareness campaign regarding the Covid-19 outbreak,” said Nkosi.
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