MEDIA STATEMENT BY THE PREMIER OF KWAZULU-NATAL, HON. MR SIHLE ZIKALALA, ON THE OCCASION OF A MEDIA BRIEFING ON THE PROVINCE’S STATE OF READINESS FOR COVID – 19, DURBAN, 30 JUNE 2021
MEC FOR TRANSPORT, COMMUNITY SAFETY AND LIAISON, Ms PEGGY NKONYENI
MEC FOR HEALTH, Ms NOMAGUGU SIMELANE
GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS PRESENT
MEMBERS OF THE MEDIA,
DISTINGUISHED GUESTS,
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN
INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
We extend our warmest greetings to members of the media for honouring our invitation to this media briefing.
Ladies and gentlemen, we meet here following the announcement, a few days ago, of new and stricter measures that are aimed at containing the spread of COVID – 19 through the shifting of our risk-adjusted strategy to Alert Level 4.
Once again, we are called upon to summon our collective courage so that we can be remembered as part of the generations that successfully fended off the threat of COVID – 19 and saved scores of lives, during one of the worst pandemics ever known to mankind.
We are here to unveil a new battle plan as the Province of KwaZulu-Natal, where no fewer than six of our districts have been found to be the epicentre of the new and deadlier Delta variant.
Now is the time for us to unite, consolidate our efforts and re-calibrate our battle plan as we go to war against this new variant, and the lingering threat of a third wave of COVID – 19 infections.
DELTA VARIANT IN KZN
As the Province we have data that indicate that the Delta Virus has been detected in six of our districts.
These districts are Harry Gwala, Ethekwini, Zululand, King Cetshwayo, Ugu, Ilembe.
We have developed our battle plan against this deadly variant. It all starts with acting and acting fast and obeying all the Covid-19 protocols and alert level 4 regulations.
We welcome scientific reports that tell us that the vaccines that are being rolled out in our country – that is Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson - are more effective against the Delta virus when compared to previous variants. We are also told that the vaccines have an 89 percent efficacy when it comes to protection against severe symptoms of COVID - 19.
COVID – 19 STATUS QUO
Ladies and gentlemen, in the past 24-hour reporting cycle, the Province of KwaZulu-Natal registered 483 new COVID – 19 cases, bringing the total number of reported cases to 352 401.
The average number of cases recorded in the past seven days was 753 cases per day.
The Province observed a 37% increase of cases in the past two weeks, which amounts to 2 145 cases. The actual number of new cases recorded was 3 159 for week 25; and 5 034 for week 26, which began yesterday, respectively.
The increase in the number of new cases occurred in 10 of the 11 districts across the province, with the exception of Harry Gwala District.
The Province currently has 10 532 active cases, and has sadly registered 10 689 deaths due to the virus. May the souls of the dearly-departed rest in peace.
The number of recoveries currently stands at 330 316 people.
COVID-19 RESURGENCE MONITORING
We are observing that 5 Districts are on resurgence Ethekwini, Uthukela, Umgungundlovu, Amajuba and Umzinyathi. It is now a race against the third wave for us in these districts.
As part of our battle plan we have consolidated in the following areas:
COVID – 19 STAFF CAPACITY.
We have employed, on a contractual basis, about 15 000 staff members to help boost our capacity to fight the spread of this pandemic.
These posts include:
• Professional Nurses (General)
• Professional Nurses (Specialty)
• Staff Nurses
• Nursing Assistants
• Administration Clerks
• Cleaners and Porters
• Physiotherapists
• Radiographers
• Clinical Psychologists
• Audiologists
• Optometrists
• Data capturers
These brave warriors in this war have had to team up with our pre-existing cadre of healthcare workers, and continue to mount a formidable fight to curb the spread of COVID – 19.
We are eternally grateful to all of them for the courage and determination that they have consistently shown. As we head for stormy waters again, we call on them to remain strong, but without compromising their own health and safety.
In the field of battle, even the sharpest shooter still has to wear a bullet-proof vest and helmet. Therefore, we wish to remind them of the importance of wearing their Personal Protective Equipment correctly, and at all times; and to avoid being part of large crowds, both within the work setting; in public; and at home.
COVID – 19 BED STATUS
We have reassessed our bed capacity to accommodate patients. The Province currently has 2 494 isolation beds, as well as 1411 quarantine beds that are dedicated to COVID-19. These beds will be repurposed if and when the need arises.
All in all, our 4 field hospitals have a total of more than 682 beds.
Again, we will not hesitate to repurpose more beds if the need arises. We ask of everyone not to ignore the safety protocols. Even when it comes to the illicit trade of alcohol from the so called Mr “take it or leave it”, we ask of you to think twice, as through your actions, you can cost lives by overburdening the healthcare system.
PATIENTS HOSPITALISED DUE TO COVID - 19
As of the 28th of June 2021, the province had 878 patients admitted in both public and private healthcare facilities. Of those admitted, 143 patients (16%) are in ICU, while 168 are on oxygen.
The Department has established bed monitoring centres (bureaus) in all Districts, which monitor bed utilization and bed availability. To ensure accuracy of the statistics in this regard, all information is collated and updated on a daily basis.
The current overall bed status in the Province, including beds for isolation and quarantine, can be viewed on the table below:
OXYGEN CAPACITY:
All our field hospital such as Ngwelezane, Justice Gizenga Mpanza (formerly Stanger), Clairwood Hospital, as well as the Pietermaritzburg Royal Show Grounds; have been fully-fitted with oxygen, consisting of 361 points.
The upgrading of oxygen regulators has been completed at some of our regional hospitals, such as Edendale, RK Khan, Madadeni and Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital.
Our system has been further boosted by the installation of a web-based Oxygen Cylinder Management and Ordering System. This enables us to ensure that oxygen is ordered timeously, and to avoid the shortages, which can be a matter of life and death.
We are also in regular and direct contact with our contracted oxygen supplier, Afrox, to ensure that any threats to the supply of oxygen are identified and resolved early.
We are confident that the oxygen capacity; oxygen management systems; as well as the contingency measures that we have put in place to avoid shortages, will see us through these tough times.
We must emphasise though that, although our capacity to implement an effective response is there, it can only be threatened by us lowering our guard and failing to play our part to curb the spread of COVID - 19.
It is vital that we protect our systems, so that they are not compromised through negligence.
VACCINATION UPDATE
We continue to make significant progress with the vaccination of both our senior citizens aged 60 and above, educators, as well as healthcare workers who could not be vaccinated during the first phase.
As of the 28th of June 2021, we had vaccinated 416 967 senior citizens; 68 748 educators, as well as 130 546 health workers.
The total number of senior citizens who are currently registered on the Electronic Vaccination Data System currently stands at 553 279, from a target of just over 955 000 that we need to vaccinate.
The number of vaccination sites that we have now prepared for the Pfizer vaccine is 359; whereas for educators, we have prepared 102 vaccination sites. All in all, we currently have 152 active sites for both vaccines.
Umkhanyakude and Ethekwini Districts have completed their allocated doses earlier than other districts. The vaccines doses will be available again from today 30th June 2021.
The Province is now vaccinating an average 12 000 people per day. We are intensifying vaccination of the elderly, and also increasing capacity in our rural areas.
We urge all the qualifying categories of people at this stage to register on the database. Let us increase the registration tempo. If you have someone who is 60 years and above not vaccinated please do something to assist.
PLAN BY THE JCPS TO ENFORCE THE LAW AND ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH COVID – 19 REGULATIONS
Following the announcement of the Adjusted Lockdown to Alert Level–4, we have directed the Justice, Crime Prevention And Security Cluster (JCPS) Cluster to review its plans and come up with a clear programme for the next 14-days and possibly beyond.
Already the ProvJoint, which is a structure that integrates all law enforcement agencies, has met to respond to the new developments.
The new plan is informed by experience and areas that previously have had challenges in terms of non-compliance with the regulations.
In terms of this plan, the focus will be on residential areas, where there is generally high movement of people, and we will have operations throughout the province.
Already, work is taking place in areas that have been identified as hotspots; but we will now be beefing-up the teams and our operations.
Disturbingly, in the month of June 2021, more than 1 763 people were arrested for violating the National Lockdown Regulations. A vast majority of those are people who were arrested for not wearing masks; as well as for cases of failure to confine themselves to their places of residence during the stipulated times.
Among some of our plans for the heightened enforcement of Alert Level-4 regulations, are:
-Targeted enforcement operations in hotspot areas
-Intelligence-driven operations targeting illegal movement and sale of alcohol
-Multi-disciplinary roadblocks targeting various crime categories
-Enforcement of the law to ensure adherence to regulated hours
-Enforcing compliance with regards to the wearing of masks; and
-Enforcement of sanctions for other forms of non-compliance
Ladies and Gentlemen, whilst we commend the police for their work, we also implore them to prioritize their own safety as well.
It is disturbing to know that some of our police members have also suffered through this pandemic. During the month of April, 10 Police Stations were closed due to Covid-19 infections; and in May, a total of 24 Police Stations had to be closed due to infections.
These police stations were subsequently re-opened after disinfection.
The number of law enforcement officers infected by the virus in May was 23, and 14 officers have recovered. We wish those who are still ill a speedy recovery.
VACCINATION OF POLICE OFFICERS
We also wish to welcome the announcement by the President of the Republic of South Africa His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa that on the 05th July 2021, which is next Monday, we are starting with the vaccination of police and other security personnel. This is an important move that will protect fellow officers. MEC Nkonyeni as the Chairperson of the JCPS Cluster will lead this vaccination programme.
We are acutely aware of the challenges of crime that our police have to deal with, and we wish to commend them on their good work, especially on dealing with the crime situation in Pietermaritzburg.
We know that some criminals will want to exploit the plight of our people during Alert Level-4. We are sending a very stern warning that criminals must not dare try their luck with the police.
We also appeal to the police to defend themselves against dangerous and merciless criminals.
We are also concerned by the increasing number of Gender-Based Violence and Femicide cases in the province. The number of Gender-Based Violence cases reported in May was 1562, which is extremely concerning. The areas that were most affected by GBV were Plessislaer, Umlazi, Inanda, Empangeni, Eshowe, Madadeni, Phoenix, Chatsworth, Verulam and KwaDukuza.
We call upon those who are affected by GBV to report it, or to confide in others who can report it, so that such matters are brought to the attention of law enforcement authorities, who must act without fear or favour.
PASSING AWAY OF DAN MABUYAKHULU
We have learnt with great sadness about the passing away of our dear brother and comrade Dan Mabuyakhulu, who was a brother to former MEC, Mike Mabuyakhulu. Comrade Dan was a former mayor of Amajuba, Exco member of Newcastle Municipality, former provincial chairperson of SADTU, former regional chairperson of Emalahleni region, and former national chair of the National Council of TVETS. At the time of demise, he was working in the office of the Premier, advancing the cause of farm workers and farm dwellers, particularly in matters of land reform. He will be dearly missed. We send our deepest condolences to the Mabuyakhulu family.
CONCLUSION,
As we continue to race against the onset of the third wave, we urge all fellow compatriots to play their part by behaving responsibly, and avoiding conducts that may lead into acquisition and spread of the virus. We will be going corner by corner, and district by district, to vaccinate our people as more vaccine doses become available.
To all healthcare workers who have once again risen to the challenge, and continue to perform sterling jobs by saving lives everyday – despite the risk of infection – siswele imilomo eyizinkulungwane ukunibonga.
To those who have lost their loved ones, we send our deepest condolences. We say, lalani ngenxeba. Akwehlanga olungehliyo.
And to those whose loved ones are in hospitals, fighting for their lives, we are with you in our thoughts and prayers.
Let us continue with the fight to stay alive. Now is not the time to give up. Working together, we can defeat COVID – 19.
Thank you.