Residents queue outside Grosvenor Park Recreation Centre for their vaccine, 21 July 2021. Vaccination sites in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni will open on Sunday. Gauteng has 43% new Covid-19 cases in the country. Picture: Nigel Sibanda
It was to be expected that Limpopo health MEC Phophi Ramathuba would kick over the hornets’ nest with her suggestion that she wanted to ban the sale of alcohol to unvaccinated people.
There are a number of reasons why she was reaching and why the backlash against her was swift.
Many districts of her province are economically depressed and selling booze is one way some people keep body and soul together.
And then, to introduce such restrictions is tantamount to coercing people to have the jab, as the Democratic Alliance correctly pointed out in its response.
Yet, the reality is that booze goes hand in hand with irresponsible behaviour and it often means people ignore masking, sanitising and social distancing rules.
In other words, this is behaviour which helps spread the virus. Therefore, if people are vaccinated and behave badly, the overall risk to the community is reduced.
And reducing the risk is about reducing pressure on hospital beds, reducing the likelihood that people will die.
Perhaps it is time the authorities used “shock tactics” to drive home the point that vaccinations are the best way back to a safe, normal life.
Lives should always trump booze in a nation whose people care about each other.
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