Zulu says death of young Sassa official proof ‘we are at war’ with Covid-19
The minister urges the elderly to adhere to government directives as they are at a high risk of falling ill due to Covid-19.
Lindiwe Zulu, Minister of Social Development, can be seen during a press briefing at the DIRCO Media Centre, 24 March 2020, Pretoria. Picture: Jacques Nelles
Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu has urged South Africans not to doubt the devastating effects of the coronavirus and how deadly it was.
Speaking at an interministerial media brief on Wednesday on Covid-19 economic and social measures announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa, Zulu said everyone was at “war” with Covid-19, a war that required all to be “armed”.
Zulu said some had doubts about the devastating effects of Covid-19 and want to “believe by seeing with their own eyes”.
“To those who want to believe by seeing with their own eyes like Thomas, can I please say to them that already as a department, as Sassa, we have lost one of our own, a very young woman who was doing everything she could in order to be part… of us to drive forward this very difficult work,” Zulu said.
The minister said those who doubted the effects of Covid-19 should look at the recorded number of deaths.
She said South Africans should also look at global figures, including those from Europe and the rest of Africa, on the number of recorded deaths due to Covid-19, which further proved that “we are at war”.
Zulu said the department of social development urges South Africans, especially the elderly as they are more vulnerable to contracting the virus, to follow the directions given by the government during the period.
“So that when this is over and done with we have fewer people we can count as people we have lost a nation,” Zulu said.
(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)
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