President Cyril Ramaphosa said during a question-and-answer session with editors yesterday that South Africa had been ‘operating under an economy that is both colonial and racist’ and the Covid-19 crisis provided ‘a much stronger platform’ for the government to ‘realign’ the economy to deal with the country’s challenges.
He did not think the pandemic had affected the economy negatively, but rather gave the country a ‘stronger rationale to transform and restructure’.
Ramaphosa’s comments followed a Sunday Times report on an African National Congress document urging the government to use the Covid-19 crisis to advance state intervention in the economy.
Ramaphosa said: ‘Has Covid-19 affected the economy negatively? No. If anything Covid-19 gives us a much stronger platform, a much stronger reason, if you like – if you ever needed a reason – a stronger rationale to transform and restructure. The economy is crying out for restructuring. We have been operating under an economy that is both colonial and racist over many years, and that economy needs to be realigned to deal with the challenges South Africa faces.
‘For this reason, we say, and I am glad others are saying it, even in business, we need a reset.’ The objective was ‘inclusive growth’ capable of responding to poverty and joblessness.
‘My strong view is that we cannot carry on countenancing living with 10 million people without work.’ This would mean ensuring a ‘productive’ economy, with greater industrialization and localisation, with an emphasis on infrastructure development.
The Sunday Times reported yesterday on an African National Congress national executive committee document urging greater state control over the country’s post-coronavirus recovery.
The report said ANC leaders favouring greater state control ‘have been emboldened by the disruption caused by the two-month lockdown and are using Covid-19 to push for radical policy implementation’.
It said the document was the product of engagements with the tripartite alliance leaders.
It quoted South African Communist Party leader Solly Mapaila as saying that the Covid-19 crisis provided an opportunity for the state to be ‘empowered’ to ‘discipline capital and the private sector’, which was at its ‘weakest’.
Positive cases rose by 1 716 to 32 683, and there were 40 more coronavirus-related deaths, taking the toll to 683.
Contrary to initial plans for all schools nationally to reopen today, the department of basic education said last night that grade 7 and 12 pupils would only report back to school next Monday. However, some schools in the Western Cape will be reopening for these grades today.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga yesterday postponed an address on the state of readiness of schools to reopen until this morning.
Resistance to opening schools has been exerted by teacher unions, while the department acknowledge that some schools were not ready to reopen today.
In a statement last night, the department said the reopening of classes was being pushed back by a week to next Monday.
This followed meetings with the Council of Education Ministers. Among documents considered was a technical report from the Heads of Education Departments Committee.
Department spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said: ‘All three reports converged on the fact that a substantial number of schools would not be ready for the reopening tomorrow (today, 1 June), albeit tremendous progress had been made by most provinces, which overall reflected 80% state of readiness.’
Concerns arose over some provinces not having received personal protective equipment for learners, and some schools not being ready to receive teachers and pupils.
At this stage, school management teams, teachers and non-teaching staff will be at work this week to prepare for the arrival of learners.
Mhlanga said: ‘Provincial and district officials should ensure that health, safety, and social distancing requirements, are strictly adhered to when teachers arrive.
‘This whole coming week must be used for the proper orientation and training of teachers, the mopping and ramping of all supply chain matters, and final touches to the readiness of each facility for the arrival of learners.’
However, Western Cape education MEC Debbie Schafer said most schools in the province would reopen today for grades 7 and 12.
She said: ‘Whilst we are aware of the many anxieties surrounding Covid-19, keeping schools closed indefinitely is not going to resolve them.
‘We shall accordingly be open for learners (today). The week will be used primarily for the orientation of learners into the new Covid-19 safety and learning environment.’
Some schools would not receive learners today, either because their safety protocals were not ready, or because they were closed for cleaning after having had a confirmed Covid-19 infection in a staff member.
In his session with editors yesterday, Ramaphosa acknowledged that he, rather than minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, should have announced the government’s change of mind about the extended ban on cigarette sales.
The SA Human Rights Commission said it was investigating social media posts depicting Dlamini-Zuma as an ape. A complaint about the post, under an account in the name of ‘Daniel Herselman’, was evidently laid by the South African Council of Churches.
In response to the post, ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte called Herselman a ‘racist with absolutely no respect for human beings or human life’.