The Beer Association of South Africa (BASA) has expressed disappointment over Cabinet’s banning of the sale of alcohol for the next 14 days.
The ban comes amid the new adjusted Alert Level 4 restrictions, announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday night.
Ramaphosa says the new restrictions will help slow the further spread of the coronavirus.
BASA CEO Patricia Pillay says government should focus on speeding up the vaccination programme.
“It is very disappointing and really quite shattered because we have been having this narrative for the last year-and-a-half. We have been saying to the President that we have data showing there are various other interventions. We are seeing the effects of reducing gatherings, make sure people have more pharmaceutical measures in place.”
“But it is not the banning of alcohol that helps and it is really more about getting everyone vaccinated in his country which is something that has really been a failure on the part of government at the moment,” says Pillay.
Below is the full interview with BASA CEO Patricia Pillay:
To contain the massive surge in infections, South Africa will be moving to Alert Level 4 for a period of 14 days. Additional restrictions will be in place from tomorrow, 28th June 2021.#StaySafe #CoronaVirusSA #Ramaphosa #Level4 #14Days pic.twitter.com/2XPY21cBgq
— Presidency | South Africa ?? (@PresidencyZA) June 27, 2021
Restaurant Association of South Africa unhappy with Level 4 lockdown
Meanwhile, the Restaurant Association of South Africa (RASA) says its sector will be the hardest hit under Level 4 lockdown.
The association says while it appreciates there are difficult choices to be made due to COVID-19, there has been no consultation, financial support nor remedy for the sector.
RASA warns there will be thousands of jobs lost due to the newly announced restrictions.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the sector could no longer have sit-ins at Level 4 and can only serve takeaways.
The restaurant industry says government has no plan nor financial support for the sector which has been bleeding jobs and closing businesses since last year.
The video below is President Ramaphosa’s address:
