Two men make a toast prior to drink a beer at a bar table on March 10, 2015 in Pont-Audemer, northwestern France. AFP PHOTO/CHARLY TRIBALLEAU. (Photo credit should read CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP/Getty Images)
The EFF has stated that they remain opposed to the lifting on the ban of the sale of alcohol during level 3 lockdown.
In a statement on Monday following the resumption of alcohol sales, the red berets urged “South Africans to be mindful of the dangers that are inherent with alcohol consumption” and the pressure it would subsequently put on the country’s “already dilapidated healthcare system”.
The red berets said the country’s healthcare system had been struggling even before the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The party said the lifting of the ban on the sale of alcohol was “profit driven and does not consider the sanctity of human life”.
“The impact of alcohol abuse reaches far beyond economic costs; instead, the negative economic consequences of alcohol consumption affect the material welfare of society as a whole,” the EFF said.
The party said lifting the ban would result in law enforcement agencies and “healthcare infrastructure” being strained as it has been proven that alcohol was a “factor in social disobedience and disorder”.
The party said the lift would also “negatively impact the health of consumers” of alcohol.
“We have had numerous reports that confirm, with empirical evidence, the fact that the alcohol ban has had the most significant benefit for social stability and the distribution of the scarce medical resources,” the EFF statement reads.
The party cited reports by Groote Schuur Hospital, a month into level 5 lockdown and the ban on the sale of alcohol, of “unprecedented” decreases in trauma cases.
The EFF said the ban had also contributed to the decrease of other crimes such as rape and attempted murder, among others.
“The reduced overall violence as reported by crime statistics goes hand in hand with reductions in violent deaths since the Covid-19 lockdown and alcohol sales ban.”
The red berets called on President Cyril Ramaphosa “to heed to scientific and empirical evidence and not be forced by the white monopoly capitalists” on the ban.
The party threatened to hold Ramaphosa “personally responsible” when the country’s healthcare system and law enforcement agencies are inevitably burdened due to the lift on the ban.
“We will hold Ramaphosa accountable for the death of people due to trauma units filled with cases of alcohol-inspired conflicts and we will hold him responsible for the general disorder which will result in the spread of the coronavirus.”
(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)
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