With less than a week before the end of the latest extension of the national state of disaster, the government is yet to finalise the new regulations that will replace the Covid-19 regulations once this is lifted.
Though the lifting of the state of disaster and the introduction of new legislation was high on the agenda during this week’s national coronavirus command council (NCCC) meeting and cabinet meetings as previously reported by Business Day, minister in the presidency Mondli Gungubele said any announcements on the government's decision would be made “very soon”.
“The biggest challenge is that this thing [Covid-19] is ... so unpredictable. You must have means incase it comes at an unexpected time... I have no doubt that very soon there will be other announcements in as far as that is concerned,” Gungubele said during a post-cabinet media briefing on Thursday.
The national state of disaster is set to end on March 15 after an extension in February. It has been in place since March 2020 as part of the government’s response to manage the pandemic.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has previously indicated that the latest extension of the state of disaster would be the last, with the government expected to introduce permanent regulations to manage Covid-19.
“We have said that we have made our clear intentions to do away with the national state of disaster but we don’t want to leave a vacuum,” Gungubele said.
However, these new permanent regulations are expected to give the government less flexibility in implementing new Covid-19 rules without the approval of parliament.
The state of disaster permits the government, through co-operative governance & traditional affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, to make regulations such as imposing lockdowns, curfews and other restrictions without parliamentary oversight. It can be renewed at any time by the government.
Business Day understands that the NCCC is divided on whether the introduction of the new regulations to the National Health Act, intended to manage Covid-19, should be brought in immediately without public consultation.
The amendments to the act include making mask wearing in public spaces compulsory.
More than 42% of the adult population is fully vaccinated and booster shots are now available to the public. The number of vaccinations is still below the government’s target of vaccinating 70% of the adult population.
“Cabinet acknowledged the country’s efforts [in] the fight against Covid-19 but cautioned that the battle is not yet over, and urged all people in SA to remain vigilant and continue protecting themselves to stop the spread of the deadly virus,” Gungubele said.
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