The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government has expressed concern that the province has recorded over 5 000 new coronavirus infections per day since 30 December. Residents have been urged to abide by regulations and treat everyone as a potential risk of infection.
Premier Sihle Zikalala says this is the first time that the province has gone beyond the 5 000 mark since the start of the pandemic.
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Zikalala was addressing a media conference.
“We are extremely concerned that we have started the New Year on a bad note, having breached the 5 000 mark for daily COVID-19 infections. Three days ago when we were reporting the stats for the 30th of December 2020, our province had recorded 5 846 new infections and 116 deaths. It was the first time that we have gone beyond the 5 000 mark let alone approaching 6 000.”
Fake news
Zikalala has also lambasted people who are spreading fake news that COVID-19 does not exist.
The Premier says videos and voice notes are circulating on social media, saying that the illness is caused by 5G technology. Zikalala says this is malicious misinformation.
“We want to send a strong message that we have noted a number of conspiracy theories, particularly on social media, from people claiming that COVID-19 does not exist and that it is somehow related to 5G mobile communication technology. Others have sought to cast aspersions on the vaccine for COVID-19 and have discouraged people from taking the vaccine when it becomes available. We are pleading with those people to stop spreading fake news and malicious misinformation.”
Arrests
More than 700 people have been arrested in KZN for failure to comply with adjusted Level 3 lockdown regulations.
Zikalala says more than 300 among the suspects were not wearing masks in public.
“As of as of 29 December 2020 until the 1st of January 2021, 729 have been arrested for non-compliance of COVID-19 regulations across KwaZulu-Natal. At least 246 of these persons were arrested for failing to confine themselves to their residents during the curfew hours while 392 were arrested for not wearing their masks in various public spaces.”
KZN Premier’s briefing on latest COVID-19 statistics in the province:
