Sources close to the higher-ups of the government of South Africa have leaked classified information on coronavirus (COVID-19) and if the reports are true, President Cyril Ramaphosa will likely implement a nationwide lockdown this evening.
Why did Ramaphosa not address the nation?
The president was expected to deliver key announcements on measures the government will take to contain the spread of coronavirus on Sunday. However, this never happened.
According to Minister in the Presidency, Jackson Mthembu, Ramaphosa’s raincheck was due to ongoing consultation with the national command council.
Not much information was revealed by Mthembu about what we can expect from Ramaphosa’s much-anticipated address. All we were told was that the president has moved his public service announcement to Monday evening.
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Insiders leak reports that South Africa will go into lockdown
However, insiders have come forward to us in confidence with information reportedly leaked from a meeting between the Western Cape government, GrowthPoint and other stakeholders.
We were able to corroborate this information with a source who claimed to have received this information from a top figure in South Africa’s police force.
The voice note below was sent to one of our affiliates.
Reported details of the alleged nationwide lockdown
From what we know, Ramaphosa will reportedly implement a strict nationwide lockdown as from Tuesday 24 March.
People caught outside during lockdown will either get fined or face imprisonment for a period that is not known at this stage.
It is further reported that people will be allowed a period in the day to either visit the grocery store or pharmacies. Otherwise, the lockdown will allegedly be set in place for 21 days.
Latest updates on coronavirus cases in South Africa
The health department has yet to issue the latest infection figures. The latest data available is from infections recorded on Saturday 21 March which saw an increased to 402 coronavirus cases, 128 more than the previous day.
Gauteng and the Western Cape are the two provinces with the highest infection rate. We will provide more updates as the information trickles in.
