Ramaphosa: government mulling further relaxation of the lockdown

JOHANNESBURG – President Cyril Ramaphosa has given the strongest indication yet that the government was considering further lowering the coronavirus lockdown measures as evidence showed that the pandemic would remain a threat to global public health for some time.

In his weekly newsletter yesterday, Ramaphosa said the government wanted to lift some of the restrictions that have all but collapsed the country’s economy.

He said the gradual lifting of the regulations would ease pressure on the economy, but quickly warned that life would not be the same after the lockdown.

“Our goal is to steadily reduce the alert level by keeping the rate of infection down and getting our health system ready for the inevitable increase in cases,” Ramaphosa said.

“As the lockdown is gradually eased, life will slowly return. But it will not be life as we knew it before.”