EFF STATEMENT ON ADJUSTED LEVEL-2 RESTRICTIONS TO COMBAT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19
Monday, 31 May 2021
The EFF notes the lockdown restrictions that have been put in place to curb the spread of the deadly Corona Virus, as South Africa grapples with the reality of a third-wave.
The past couple of weeks have been marked with a rapid increase in infections of COVID-19, accompanied by a gradual increase in fatalities as a result of the virus.
In light of the utter failure of this government to vaccinate even a million people in the space of over a year, stricter lockdown conditions are the only reasonable measure to protect human life.
It is the EFF that has long said that any easing of restrictions in relation to the virus must be on the basis of science and observation of the spread of infections, and this advice has been decisively ignored.
It is for that reason that we today find ourselves in the same situation, because restrictions were prematurely eased without any scientific intervention at the level of vaccination to achieve immunity in the population.
The embarrassing and pathetic pace of vaccination in South Africa, coupled with rampant corruption and lack of pharmaceutical capacity in this country, means we will be in a permanent back and forth in restriction levels of lockdown.
There is no verifiable indication that South Africa will ever conduct mass-scale vaccinations, and Cyril Ramaphosa continues to make empty assertions of millions of vaccine doses that have been secured, yet never materialize.
The EFF is however concerned about how the government of the day plans to conduct free, fair and safe Local Government Elections, when the months predating the elections that were foolishly declared for the 27th of October 2021 are characterized by restrictions on gatherings.
We want to make it categorically clear that there is no election that is free and fair where political parties and the general populous are restricted at the level of campaigning and interaction.
The decision to hold elections in the face of a pandemic that demands we alter our way of life, is to deprive the poorest of the poor in this country from engaging with political parties and the electoral process meaningfully.
The EFF believes that any attempt to hold elections under these circumstances is an attempt by government to retain power through a manipulative use of the pandemic, in order to suppress political-opponents the to engage the electorate.
The Independent Electoral Commission’s (IEC) newly established inquiry into the feasibility of holding local government elections, headed by Former Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke must take into consideration the conditions that define the period before the actual election date, as this is how we can determine whether an election was free or not.
The EFF will continue to engage in political activity particularly as it relates to the upcoming Local Government Elections. We will do this through the continued establishment of organizational structures, doors-to-door campaigning and rallies.
It is our firm belief that the declaration of elections means there can never be restrictions that seek to dictate to political parties how they conduct their political campaigns, in relation to their constituencies.
Any attempt to do that would amount to fascism and the suppression of democratic activity, precisely because restrictions may affect electoral outcomes.
We call on all African people to abide by regulations and not be fatigued in their efforts to avoid the CoronaVirus , through wearing masks and sanitizing regularly.
