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President Cyril Ramaphosa has, in his capacity as Chair of the African Union (AU), requested the postponement of a meeting with Commissioners of the African Union Commission.

The AU meeting was scheduled to take place on 19 March 2020, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

According to the Presidency, the President’s request arises from the priority he is giving to South Africa’s national response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. The President is leading the National Command Council which meets three times a week to coordinate the multi-sectoral response to COVID-19.

The AU Commissioners support the Chairperson in running the Commission and have the responsibility to implement all decisions, policies and programmes across eight portfolios that include Peace and Security, Political Affairs, Social Affairs, Trade and Industry, and Human Resources, Science and Technology.

The meeting was due to discuss the programme of work of the African Union for the current year and would have been the President’s first meeting with Commissioners since assuming the Chair in February 2020.

The meeting has been postponed to a date to be mutually agreed upon in April 2020, said the Presidency.

The Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB) has suspended all outstanding public consultations on draft electoral wards following the declaration of Coronavirus (COVID-19) as a national disaster.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the MDB said this is in line with President Ramaphosa’s pronouncement of the virus as a national disaster.

Making the announcement on Sunday, the President said: “The current circumstances require extra-ordinary measures to curb the spread of the virus” and that “gatherings of more than 100 people will be prohibited, where small gatherings are unavoidable, organisers will need to put in place stringent measures of prevention and control”.

The MDB said the cancellations were precautionary and a mitigation measure for the public consultation process in an effort to curb the spread of corona virus.

“The MDB suspends all public consultation meetings scheduled from 18 March 2020 to 09 April 2020 with immediate effect,” read the statement.

The MDB said consultations are expected to resume from the 14 April 2020.

“The above might be changed depending on the directives issued by the National Command Council as established by the President, in this regard the MDB will communicate accordingly,” the MDB said.

Regardless of the situation, read the statement, members of the public and stakeholders are encouraged to continue to submit written submissions until 30 April 2020.

Board Chairperson Thabo Manyoni said the well-being and protection of communities during this period is of outmost importance.

“It is our responsibility to take all necessary measures as a collective to curb the spread of the virus hence we are suspending all outstanding public sessions. We further encourage communities to learn more about the virus in order to protect themselves,” said Manyoni.

These ongoing measures will be reviewed on a regular basis depending on the state of affairs.

The ward submission forms are available on the MDB website (www.demarcation.org.za) and from municipalities. Submissions should be sent to registry@demarcation.org.za.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy says there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 in the mining sector.

This comes after the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, met with the leadership of the Minerals Council in Johannesburg on Tuesday to receive an update on plans in place for the sector to adequately respond to the current Coronavirus pandemic.

On Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa declared the outbreak a national disaster and outlined a comprehensive plan detailing how the country will respond in the short to medium term.

The department said a ten-point plan has been developed for the mining sector in line with the Department of Health and National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) guidelines.

“The department’s health and safety inspectorate, working together with the mining companies and labour unions in the sector, are on high alert, and are testing the sector’s level of preparedness, with a focus on preventative control and managing any emerging risks for employees and communities in which mines operate.

“Work in the industry began over a month ago after the World Health Organisation announced the outbreak, with a focus on preventative control, and managing any emerging risks,” said the department.

It will continue to engage with the sector on, among other things, the use of their medical facilities for the broader communities around mining operations, as well as the use of any safe and unoccupied housing facilities for quarantine, should the need arise.

The Minister said: “Working together we have made great strides on the health and safety front in the sector. We are confident that our continued partnership to proactively manage the humanitarian and economic impact of this pandemic on the sector, will go a long way.”

The Department of Employment and Labour has appealed to employers to use the prescriptions of the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act of 1993 in governing workplaces in relation to Coronavirus (COVID–19).

The OHS read with the Hazardous Biological Agents Regulations requires the employer to provide and maintain as far as is reasonably practicable a working environment that is safe and without risks to the health of employees.

“Section 8(2)(b) requires steps such as may be reasonably practicable to eliminate or mitigate any hazard or potential hazard before resorting to personal protective equipment (PPE). However, in the case of COVID–19, a combination of controls is required, although the main principle is to follow the hierarchy of controls.

“However, before the implementation of control measures, current risk assessments need to be reviewed and updated, taking into account the new hazards posed by exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace. This is in accordance with Section 8 (2) (d) of the OHS Act.”

The department wishes to appeal to employers who have not prepared for pandemic events to prepare themselves and their workers as far in advance as possible of potentially worsening outbreak conditions.

The department advises employers to “go back to basics” by conducting hazard identification and risk assessment to determine the level of risk exposure and communicate to all workers.  As of 09 March 2020, coronavirus infections had spread to eight new countries – increasing to 102 countries affected worldwide.

Coronaviruses are a group of viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans, coronaviruses cause respiratory tract infections in nose, sinuses or upper throat. Symptoms of the virus include fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

COVID-19 guideline

The department has developed a COVID-19 guideline. This COVID-19 planning guidance was developed based on traditional infection prevention and occupational hygiene practices. It focuses on the need for employers to implement the following:

• Engineering controls – isolating employees from work-related hazards, installing high-efficiency air filters, increasing ventilation rates in the work environment and installing physical barriers such as face shields to provide ventilation.
• Administrative controls – these controls require action by the employee and employer. Examples of administrative controls include: encouraging sick workers to stay at home; minimizing contact among workers, clients and customers by replacing face-to-face meetings with virtual communications e.g. conference calls, Skype, etc.; minimising the number of workers on site at any given time e.g. rotation or shift work; discontinuing nonessential local and international travel; regularly check travel advice from the Department of Health at: www.health.gov.za; developing emergency communications plans, including a task team for answering workers’ concerns and internet-based communications, if feasible, providing workers with up-to-date education and training on COVID-19 risk factors and protective behaviours (e.g. cough etiquette and care of PPE); training workers who need to use protective clothing and equipment on how to put it on, use/wear it and take it off correctly, including in the context of their current and potential duties. Training material should be easy to understand and available in the appropriate language and literacy level for all workers.

• Safe Work Practices – these include procedures for safe and proper work used to reduce the duration, frequency, or intensity of exposure to a hazard. Provide resources and a work environment that promotes personal hygiene. For example, no-touch refuse bins, hand soap, alcohol-based hand rubs containing at least 70 percent alcohol, disinfectants, and disposable towels for workers to clean their hands and their work surfaces, regular hand washing or using of alcohol-based hand rubs, and display handwashing signs in restrooms.
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – while engineering and administrative controls are considered more effective in minimizing exposure to SARS-CoV-2, PPE may also be needed to prevent certain exposures. Examples of PPE include: gloves, goggles, face shields, face masks, gowns, aprons, coats, overalls, hair and shoe covers and respiratory protection, when appropriate. Employers should check the NICD website regularly for updates about recommended PPE.

Employers and workers should use this planning guidance to help identify risk levels in workplace settings and to determine any appropriate control measures to implement.

Additional guidance may be needed as COVID-19 outbreak conditions change. In the event that new information about the virus, its transmission, and impact, becomes available you may have to modify your plans accordingly.

For employers who have already planned for influenza outbreaks involving many staff members, planning for COVID-19 may involve updating plans to address the specific exposure risks, sources of exposure, routes of transmission, and other unique characteristics of respiratory infections (i.e., compared to influenza virus outbreaks).

In the case of suspected exposure contact the coronavirus hotline in South Africa: 0800 02 9999.

The Department of Employment and Labour will for now keep its labour centres opened.

The department has put in place a Crisis Management Team which will be guided by the department’s business continuity plan.

The Crisis Management Team will meet every day at 09h00 to assess the situation and put measures in place to promote health and safety of staff and its clients.

The queues at labour centres and services provided will be managed to adhere to the 100 people not gathering in one place at the same time.

The Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, Lindiwe Sisulu, has directed the department to increase the provision of water and sanitation in high density public areas, informal settlements and rural areas in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.

In response to the declaration of Coronavirus (COVID-19) as a national disaster by President Cyril Ramaphosa, Sisulu has directed the department to ensure that rural areas and informal settlements are provided with water tanks and stand pipes to increase access to water for residents.

Sisulu said she is concerned that people living in the informal settlements are at high risk of contracting and spreading the virus amongst one another.

She said she has instructed her department to urgently find other solutions that will prevent the spread of the virus in such areas.

“We find ourselves in an unfortunate situation, where we are called upon to respond to this pandemic. We commit ourselves to do everything possible to respond to the urgent needs of our people through the provision of water and sanitation, as we confront the possible spread of the virus,” Sisulu said.

In support of the measures which have been put in place to minimise and curb the spread of the virus, the department will also provide water tanks and sanitisers in public spaces including taxi ranks, train and bus stations, and other areas where people congregate.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Sunday interventions to curb the spread of COVID-19 in South Africa. These include closing schools from Wednesday, 18 March; closing 35 ports of entry and imposing a travel ban on foreign nationals from countries hardest hit by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Other interventions include the prohibition of social gatherings of more than 100 people and cancellation of mass celebrations of upcoming national days such as Human Rights Day and other large government events.

The measures were the outcome of an emergency Cabinet meeting held on Sunday in Pretoria.

Sisulu has appealed to South Africans to wash their hands regularly, while at the same time, using water sparingly, to ensure that everyone has their share.

“We call upon everyone in the human settlements, water and sanitation sector to work with government in responding to the Coronavirus. We also appeal to residents where we will be providing services to work with our officials. This is a matter which requires all of us to play our role in order to succeed,” the Minister said.

For more information and resources on COVID-19 click here.

Justice Minister Ronald Lamola has denied Janusz Walus parole over the assassination of former South African Communist Party (SACP) leader Chris Hani.

Walus is in prison for the planned assassination of former Secretary General of the South African Communist Party (SACP), Martin Thembisile Chris Hani, in 1993.

Walus was sentenced to death but with the death sentence declared unconstitutional, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

In December 2019, the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, ordered Lamola to reconsider within 60 days the decision taken in January 2019 by former Minister, Advocate Michael Masutha, to refuse granting of parole to offender Janusz Walus.

Lamola’s decision backed that taken by his predecessor former Minister, Advocate Michael Masutha.

The Minister said it is clear that the political assassination of the late Hani was executed with the intention to create chaos and mayhem in the country.

“The crime was intended and had the potential to bring about a civil war within the Republic at the time. It must also be noted that Walus was convicted of murder with no extenuating circumstances having been found to be present.

“Considering this fact, placing offender Walus on parole would negate the severity that the court sought when sentencing him. With this premise, and balancing both negative and positive factors, the placement on parole for offender Walus is not approved at this stage,” said the Minister.

Factors taken into consideration

When taking this decision, Minister Lamola said he took both positive and negative factors into consideration.

Of the positive factors, the Minister said he noted Walus’ behaviour and adjustment during his incarceration, multidisciplinary programmes attended by the offender within the correctional centre among others.

The negative factors considered include the nature and seriousness of the crime of the cold-blooded political assassination committed by the offender and the fact that the court sought to impose the severest punishment that the law permits.

Walus has spent 27-years in prison and has made several applications to be considered for parole which were denied.

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has warned the public that it is not withdrawing banknotes and coins due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

This came amid fake news circulating on social media involving a scam claiming that it is “recalling” money from the public.

“It is believed that criminal elements are visiting the homes of members of the public telling them to hand over banknotes in their possession because the banknotes have been contaminated with the Coronavirus,” said the SARB.

The central bank said the criminal elements carry fake SARB identification and provide false receipts in lieu of the banknotes “collected” which they purport can be collected from any of the banks.

“The SARB has neither withdrawn any banknotes or coins, nor [has it] issued any instruction to hand in banknotes or coins that may be contaminated with the COVID-19 virus,” the SARB said in a statement.

The SARB said it will not, under any circumstances, send employees or representatives to collect cash from the public.

“If members of the public are approached by individuals purporting to be SARB employees or representatives, to hand in their cash, they should refuse and contact local police. There currently is no evidence that the COVID-19 virus is transmitted through the use of banknotes and coins. The SARB continues to encourage members of the public to follow basic hygiene practice and clean their hands often,” said the SARB.

For more information and resources on COVID-19 click here.