NEHAWU statement on the imposition of more restrictions to fight Covid-19
15 December 2020
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (NEHAWU) notes the imposition of more restrictions to fight the resurgence of the coronavirus.
The fact that COVID-19 has killed more than 1.6 million people across the world and 1 475 deaths in South Africa between the 30th November and 10th December 2020 proves that this virus is deadly and should be treated with extreme caution and discipline, a total of 57 381 new infections were registered under the same period.
In South Africa, the daily average of new cases nationally over the last 7 days is 74% higher than the previous 7 days while the number of new cases has increased from a daily average of around 3,800 to just over 6,600 a day. Furthermore, the daily average of COVID-19 deaths has increased by nearly 50% over the same period from just over 100 deaths a day to just over 150 deaths.
These numbers paints a very gruesome picture and necessitates the stricter enforcement of restrictions to avoid further infections and deaths. Government needs to intensify its awareness campaign and appeal to all South Africans to obey the rules, regulations and protocols. The new restrictions will be useless if they are not enforced entirely especially in the hotspot areas. It is imperative to mention that government will not win this alone and also it must not exclude critical sectors like workers through their trade unions on the scientific analysis and planning to overcome this vicious virus because workers and their trade unions interface the virus on daily basis as a result their experiences will add significant value in guiding the approach the country is taking in controlling and managing the spread of the virus in society.
For instance, we would have advised government and scientists not to put more emphasis on the seasons as it was the case during the first wave that the strength of the virus was winter as if in summer the virus disappears as the second wave has proven them wrong. As a result of this misleading narrative purported by government and scientists it has psychologically made citizens to careless about the virus with the assumption that it has no effect in summer, hence, the current conduct and behaviour of South Africans to date. In our view, as NEHAWU, we need an urgent meeting with the Minister of Health and the Department of Health to assist in developing a right mindset of South Africans regarding the COVID-19 pandemic through psychological preparedness awareness campaign to be driven in order to change the mindset of our people as a whole including educating them about the nature and pattern of this virus.
As NEHAWU, we strongly believe that government tends to be more reactive rather than proactive in dealing with the virus. Moreover, our struggling healthcare system could have been better prepared to deal with a second wave if both government and the Department of health implemented our fact-finding mission report. A more proactive approach is urgently needed if we are to decisively confront and defeat the invisible enemy. For example, as many as a third of the Eastern Cape’s state ambulance fleet are in for repairs and out of commission and this takes place at a time when COVID-19 numbers in the province are skyrocketing and trauma-related cases are expected to peak over the festive season. Government did absolutely nothing to prepare for a resurgence, instead, the misused money on useless scooters. Instead of teaching our people about the dangers of COVID-19, they were encouraged to do the Jerusalema challenge.
We note the announcement by the President that to date, over 38 000 health workers in the public sector have tested positive for coronavirus and nearly 5000 workers were admitted to hospital including 391 fatalities. However, we believe that these numbers might be low in real terms because we know for a fact that many healthcare institutions hide the test results of infected workers in order not to scare other workers and keep them working. For example, at the Addington Hospital in Durban more than 50 workers have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last three weeks, with about 20 more still waiting for their results. No formal communication has been made to workers nor attempts to sanitise or shut down of the affected area of the hospital.
As NEHAWU, we hold a strong view that it is very purposeless for the President to just announce numbers without providing a concrete plan to defend these workers. The President said nothing about the issue of understaffing, lack of quality Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), and the non-compliance to the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act by employers. Furthermore, the President once again elected to ignore the issue of the non-payment of salary increase including a danger allowance or moral incentive for frontline workers. However, these workers are expected to go beyond the call of duty while our own government continues to treat them like trash and calls them greedy when they demand what is rightfully theirs. Workers do not need empty words from the President or public stunt to create an impression that this government cares about workers, when in fact it does not care at all. All they need is protection, safe working conditions and decent salaries including the payment of allowances.
We note our participation in the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Global Vaccine Access Facility called COVAX. Albeit delayed, we however hope that our participation will allow us to receive the vaccine as soon as it is available. Furthermore, we want to call on government to prioritise frontline workers when the vaccine arrives as they are at the forefront of fighting the virus on behalf of the entire nation.
Lastly, we would like to further appeal to our people to be safe especially during the festive season. We must all avoid super-spreader events, drink responsible and continue to follow all protocols and regulations including observing the curfew and protecting ourselves and loved ones.
Issued by Khaya Xaba, National Spokesperson, NEHAWU, 15 December 2020
