The Democratic Alliance (DA) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is deeply saddened by news of the province’s first Covid-19 death.
According to reports, the deceased is a 73-year-old man from Ladysmith in Northern KZN. The DA extends its sincere condolences to the family concerned and we wish them strength at this very difficult time.
This death is an unfortunate reminder that Covid-19 can strike anywhere in our communities and our province.
It is also a reminder that the lockdown procedures must be taken seriously and the DA calls on the people of KZN to abide by the regulations and to only leave home for essential shopping and health issues. There is no cure or vaccine for Covid-19 at this stage and best practice internationally shows that the most effective weapon to defeat this virus is by practicing social distancing.
The DA again extends its gratitude to the thousands of essential services workers – our doctors, nurses, paramedics and security personnel. These are the true heroes during this difficult time as they work tirelessly to treat the sick, prevent deaths and keep all South Africans safe and secure. The best way that we can show our appreciation to them is by staying at home to protect them from the virus and from by not overloading our already fragile health system.
Regrettably, the DA has received several complaints regarding shortages of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) within some of KZN’s health facilities. We are working our hardest to ensure that additional gear in imported – without duties – and distributed to all health personnel. We are also monitoring the negotiations around converting some local manufacturing capacity to produce PPE.
The DA remains at the forefront of the battle against this pandemic and to ensuring that all necessary steps and actions are taken to protect the people of our province.