Many South Africans, prominent politicians and leading scientific experts believe that the State of Disaster laws should be scrapped as South Africa emerges from the Omicron wave.
There were even discussions of a meeting this week to discuss ways to scrap the State of Disaster, however, on Friday, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma went the other way and extended the State of Disaster to 15 February 2022.
As Dlamini-Zuma is the head of the NCCC, she had the final say on published lockdown regulations. Her role as COGTA Minister also gives her the power to enforce restrictions.
Dlamini-Zuma already caused tons of controversy when she announced both the smoking and alcohol bans before President Ramaphosa did and when she tried to redefine the boundaries of a “beach” last January.
South Africa has passed through the fourth wave of Covid with no new restrictions required as hospitals remained largely empty. There is a large number of immunity within our borders but the chance to lift the restrictions for good were squandered by Dlamini-Zuma and her decision has angered many, including Cilliers Brink – the DA shadow minister.
Brink is now insisting that Dlamini-Zuma must account to Parliament for this extension:
“Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma must appear before Parliament to explain her decision to extend the Covid-19 national state of disaster for yet another month. The Minister has now extended this declaration 21 consecutive times in the past two years without any account to the South African people. The last thing such a government should be entrusted with are extra-constitutional powers that allow ministers like Dlamini-Zuma to make their own laws with the stroke of the pen without Parliamentary concurrence and without public consultation.”
Sources: MSN, The World News
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