AN earlier decision by government to allow the sale of cigarettes during the Covid-19 lockdown was rescinded after the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) consulted medical experts and various role-players.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said this on Monday after sections of society implied that Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma had arbitrarily gazetted the ban.
Previously the president had announced that the sale of tobacco products would be allowed when the country moved to level 4 of the nationwide lockdown. Level 4 of the lockdown, aimed at curbing the spread of the virus, began on Friday, 1 May.
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“After careful consideration and discussion, the NCCC reconsidered its position on tobacco. As a result, the regulations ratified by Cabinet and announced by Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma on 29 April extended the prohibition,” the President said in his weekly newsletter.
President Ramaphosa said the decision was made collectively.
“This was a collective decision and the public statements by both myself and the Minister were done on behalf of, and mandated by, the collective I lead. As of now – which is 46 days since we recorded our 100th coronavirus case – we have 6,783 confirmed cases. Italy, which has a similar size population to ours, had more than 140,000 cases and the United States had around 700,000 confirmed cases at the 46-day mark,” he said.
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The President said every regulation was put in place after being carefully considered by government.
“The reality is that we are sailing in uncharted waters. There is still a great deal about the epidemiology of the virus that is unknown. It is better to err on the side of caution than to pay the devastating price of a lapse in judgment in future.”
While there are differing views on some of the decisions government has taken – and in some instances these have polarised opinion – government, is making every effort to act in a way that advances the rights to life and dignity of all citizens.
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