Our leaders need to start walking the talk.
It’s been nine weeks of lockdown now, nine weeks of talk.
And Munier is getting more and more vererg each time our politicians go on TV to announce new rules and regulations.
Every week it’s President Cyril Ramaphosa and his “fellow South Africans” along with Health Minister Zweli Mkhize, Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel and - everyone’s favourite - Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs,
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, rolling out the plans.
But it’s not just the National Coronavirus Command Council and those in government, the opposition parties have been rekking their bekke non-stop too, especially the DA.
For every new government measure introduced, there’s a counter argument from John Steenhuisen and Helen Zille.
The emails, press releases, notices of legal action, podcasts and tweets - jirre, the tweets - don’t stop - it’s impossible to keep up with all the praatjies.
KNOWS BETTER: Acting DA leader John Steenhuisen
And what are they discussing so feverishly?
Well, our well-being during this
pandemic, of course.
Your health and mine has become a national political, points-scoring debate.
Everyone seems to think they know best, and what’s good for us.
Everyone is skielik an epidemiologist, quoting studies and best practices, and pulling out data and graphs, much of it conflicting.
Confusion reigns. Who do we listen to?
Do we remain in lockdown or not? Do we “flatten the curve” or “raise the line”?
And what is this “herd immunity” that “experts” are talking about - where you allow the majority of the population to become infected and naturally develop antibodies to fight the virus?
Government has made it clear that they will not
gamble with our lives.
They have taken an ultra cautious approach since 27 March - some have called it the strictest lockdown in the world - effectively shutting down society and the economy for over two months.
Ramaphosa has stuck to his lives-before-livelihoods strategy, emphasising time and again that keeping the infection rate under control will save “thousands of lives”.
TIME TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE: President Cyril Ramaphosa
His critics, meanwhile, warn that starvation resulting from lockdown will kill more people than the virus in the long run - in spite of there being no evidence to support this forecast.
Still, the danger signs are there and the projections are that the damage to the economy could cause unemployment to balloon to 50%.
The number of hungry people could increase from 6 million to 9 million.
Yet, if government is putting safety first - and taking a hard line on things like tobacco, alcohol, travel and exercise - why risk it all by opening up schools and places of worship?
According to a poll on Daily Voice’s Facebook page, 90% of readers were against the idea of sending their children back to school.
While two thirds said they would not feel safe going back to church or mosque when government allows religious gatherings for up to 50 persons from 1 June.
You can’t blame them.
People scared and confused by this crisis.
The politicians are not helping either.
It’s easy for them to talk, write emails and hold video meetings to discuss policy.
RISKY: Sending children to school during a pandemic
Many of them are clearly out of touch and not leading by example.
They’re not out in the streets, in the communities, struggling to provide for their families while trying to be safe.
Well, we’ve seen a handful of our masked leaders - including the President himself - at public engagements recently.
THE BEARER OF BAD NEWS: Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma
Mayor Dan Plato and Premier Alan Winde have been visible too - the latter having to self-isolate at least twice after exposure to infected people.
Perhaps if Parliament reopened for sessions of up to 50 MPs, the public would feel more comfortable about going to school and places of worship again.
Then again, according to level 3 restrictions, people over 60 are encouraged to work from home - and that means many of our “honourable members”!