Government cracks down further to prevent Covid-19 spreading

Government is cracking down further on social gatherings and flouting the recently announced ban on gatherings of more than 100 people could now land you in jail, as could breaching some of the strict new rules around liquor sales.

The Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, late on Wednesday night gazetted new regulations to “prevent an escalation” and “alleviate, contain and minimise the effects” of Covid-19.

This as part of government’s ramped up response to Covid-19’s descent on South Africa and in the wake of President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring a national state of disaster on Sunday night.

The new regulations allowed the police to arrest anyone who refuses to disperse from a gathering of more than 100 people.

According to the Gazette, “any person who convenes a gathering or hinders, interferes with, or obstructs an enforcement officer in the exercise of his or her powers, or the performance of his or her duties in terms of these regulations, is guilty of an offence and, on conviction, liable to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both such fine and imprisonment”

This follows the president’s announcement, also on Sunday night, that these gatherings would be “prohibited”.

Late-night liquor sales have now also been banned, with the Gazette placing a moratorium on the “sale, dispensing or transportation of alcoholic beverages” during certain times.

“All on-consumption premises selling liquor … must be closed between 18:00 and 09:00 the next morning on weekdays and Saturdays; and from 13:00 on Sundays and public holidays,” it read. It said the same would apply to all “off-consumption premises”.

In addition, the Gazette said no special or events liquor licenses would be considered for approval during the national state of disaster and that the assembly of more than 50 people at premises where liquor is sold and consumed would now be prohibited.

Further, it said anyone who permitted more than 50 persons at premises where liquor was sold and consumed, would now also be guilty of an offence.

And the same would go for anyone who “intentionally misrepresents that he, she or any other person is infected with Covid-19”.

This after a woman in the Eastern Cape was arrested after she allegedly posed as a patient displaying symptoms of the virus.

As per the Gazette, anyone who intentionally exposed anyone else to the virus, could now be charged with murder.

It also provided for the forced quarantining and isolation for anyone who was suspected or confirmed to have Covid-19 and refused testing or treatment.

This after the authorities were earlier this week forced to go to court when an infected family fled isolation.

And in an apparent bid to mitigate against panic buying, the new regulations allow the Minister of Trade and Industry to issue directions to “protect consumers from excessive, unfair, unreasonable or unjust pricing of goods and services during the national state of disaster; and maintain security and availability of the supply of goods and services”.

These latest efforts to curb the effects of the virus come after the number of infected people in South Africa reached more than 100 on Wednesday morning.

“South Africa now has 116 confirmed cases of Covid-19,” the Department of Health said in its statement.

It said 31 new cases had been confirmed since Tuesday night and that six of these were local transmission cases.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.