Dear MyPE
The Democratic Alliance (DA) notes that there is growing and broad agreement on a gradual return to economic activity, and ahead of President Ramaphosa’s address to the nation this evening, the DA respectfully puts forward the following questions, requests, and suggestions which should be addressed in his speech. I have a virtual meeting scheduled with the President for 16:30 today, and I will put these questions to him directly.
Furthermore, we have today sent the President updates to our Covid-19 response working paper, as our contribution to the national decision-making process.
1. We request clarity on the alleged statement by Prof Shabir Mahdi (of Wits University, who heads the public health subcommittee advising the President and his cabinet) revising down the expected number of SA Covid deaths to 45 000 over the next 2-3 years, from an earlier estimate of between 120 000 and 150 000 fatalities. This was reported in a TimesLive article on 21 April. We need to understand if this estimate of 45 000 deaths over 2-3 years factors in a series of lockdowns, or is the estimate before interventions. If the latter, then this revision profoundly impacts SA’s optimal response to this pandemic. A death rate of 45 000 over 2-3 years is broadly in line with SA’s current murder rate and Easter road death rate, neither of which have elicited hard lockdowns in response. Therefore, we request clarity around these alleged comments.
2. We request clarity around Prof Salim Karim’s comments reported by Rapport on Sunday, in an interview with Hanlie Retief, in which he said: “I think we’ve already reaped the benefits of the lockdown. I’m not sure how much more the lockdown can help us.” If this is the view of the government’s leading expert on the coronavirus epidemic, it is important that South Africans know how this view is guiding government’s decisions on the future implementation of a lockdown strategy.
3. We request the immediate implementation of a policy of mandatory cloth masks for all, in all public places. At least 3 free cloth masks should be provided free of charge to all those who are unable to afford masks. Assuming 40 million people require free masks, this would be 120 million masks in all, and would cost an estimated R600 million – a mere fraction of the cost to SA of a single day of hard lockdown. This is particularly important for high-density situations like on public transport and in shops, but should be mandatory in all places where people are not able to keep a 1.5 m distance.
4. We suggest that a suppress-release approach on alcohol availability should be used to relieve pressure on hospitals. This could be generalised or localised depending on circumstances.
5. We suggest that all sectors should have, and publish online, a set of social-distancing protocols in place specific to their context, before re-opening. Furthermore, all businesses should be required to complete a workplace risk assessment and mitigation form. This form must be available on the business premises and website. This will inform the public, policy makers, suppliers and customers of the risks inherent to that business and the mitigation measures which the business has put in place to deal with those risks.
6. As the economy opens up public transport will be a central nexus of human interaction.
Three criteria are crucial:
- Everyone on public transport to be masked.
- Everyone on public transport to sanitize their hands on entrance and exit.
- Public transport vehicles to be sanitized regularly.
7. We call for the immediate lifting of all activities listed in our attached document.
8. We request transparent, reliable and up-to-date reporting of key Covid-19 response data. In particular, we request national, provincial and area-specific data around cases, testing, hospital load/capacity and implementation of economic stimulus measures. We believe this to be an entirely reasonable request, given the massive sacrifice South Africans are making to slow the spread and minimise the impact of this disease. Only with this information can we know how best to respond.
Assuming that the expected fatality rate for Covid remains far above other reasons for mortality in South Africa, then a Smart Lockdown strategy (locking down only when, where and to the extent necessary, coupled with more targeted interventions – particularly a massive, rapid-response testing programme and free mandatory masks for all in public) is preferable to a series of hard lockdowns over the coming years. Indeed the President has already suggested that SA will be taking the smart lockdown route. A smart lockdown is simply not possible without accurate, up-to-date, localised, transparent data.
The following data should be available daily and to all:
Indicator | Currently available? | Available at:
Cases
Total cases (national) | Yes | https://sacoronavirus.co.za/
Total deaths (national) | Yes | https://sacoronavirus.co.za/
Total recoveries (national) | Yes | https://sacoronavirus.co.za/
Testing
Total tests (national) | Yes | https://sacoronavirus.co.za/
Average time between testing and reporting (national) | No |
Community health worker (CHW) infection rate (national) | No |
Results of continuous random testing for prevalence and symptoms classified by:
– Age
– Area- HIV status | No |
Total testing capacity per day (district/area) | No |
Total tests performed per day (area/district) by
-Type of test (antigen vs antibody)
-Randomised vs targeted
-CHW or general public
Case numbers by area/district
-Daily new cases
-Total cases
-Active cases
-Total recoveries
-Daily deaths
-Total deaths
Hospital load/capacity
Total hospital capacity (national)
-Number of beds
-Number of ICU beds
-Number of ventilators
Number of patients hospitalised (national)
-All
-Covid-related
Number of patients requiring ICU/ventilator (national)
-All
-Covid-related
Number of Covid patients by area/district
-Total
-Daily new cases
-Number requiring ICU/ventilator
Total hospital capacity and occupancy by area/district
-ICU beds
– Ventilators
-ICU beds used by COVID patients
PPE
Total supply of PPE
-PPE per health worker (area/district)
-Cloth masks per person (area/district)
Economic support
SMME support (DSBD Debt Relief Fund)
-List of business applying
-List of businesses receiving
-Rand amount loaned per business
-Total Rand amount loaned
Temporary Employee Relief Scheme (TERS)
-Number employees receiving relief
-Rand amount of total relief given
-List of businesses that have received relief for employees including Rand amount
UIF payments
-Monthly rand amount paid out to the unemployed
-Number of unemployed receiving relief
Covid grant payments
-Rand amount paid per month
-Number of recipients paid per month
Basic Income Grant payments to the unemployed not on UIF or grants (R350 per month)
-Rand amount paid per month
-Number of recipients paid per month
IDC/DTI funding
-Number of firms applying for funding
-Number of firms receiving funding
Solidarity fund
-Rand value of assets
-Rand value and details of expenditure
Regards
John Steenhuisen MP
Leader of the Democratic Alliance
Port Elizabethan
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