Calls for new Liquor Amendment bill as fears grow over another ban in South Africa businesstech.co.za - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from businesstech.co.za Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Lockdown can’t be used to change alcohol laws in South Africa: liquor body
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The South African Liquor Brandowners Association (Salba) says it is wary of a push by anti-alcohol groups to use the country’s Covid-19 lockdown to change rules around the sale of alcohol.
The local alcohol industry and its stakeholders share the government’s concern over the pandemic and will continue to support meaningful measures to flatten the curve, said Sibani Mngadi, chairperson of Salba.
He said the industry has repeatedly made recommendations to the government through the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) on measures to deal with surges in Covid-19 infections and will continue to work with the government in an effort to save lives, while protecting the livelihoods of a million jobs within the alcohol value-chain.
Government warned over more alcohol restrictions in South Africa
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The National Liquor Traders Council says that government will need to engage with the liquor industry before considering another alcohol ban for South Africa.
Speaking to eNCA, the council’s managing director Lucky Ntimane said that the industry lost over 20 weeks of work due to numerous bans since the lockdown was first introduced in South Africa at the end of March 2020.
Ntimane said that bans are a blunt measure and that the government needs to sit down with the industry about the loss of jobs they have caused.
“We are not going to participate in ay unjust bans or restrictions that does not take into consideration the fact that our people are dependent on alcohol to take care of themselves and their families,” he said.
PUTRAJAYA (Bernama): The gazetting of the Road Transport (Amendment) Bill 2020 which came into effect on Oct 23 is one of the biggest achievements of the Transport Ministry (MOT) during the Perikatan Nasional government’s year-long administration.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said several fatal accidents due to drink drivers triggered the push for the amendment of the bill, especially Sections 41 to 45 to impose stricter punishment for dangerous driving, or driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. We had consultations with a total of 345,021 people participating online, and 94% agreed to amend Act 333. I then continued to ask my officers, within the first 100 days (of the Perikatan administration) to present a memorandum to the Cabinet to be brought to Parliament, he said in an interview on MOT’s one-year Malaysia Prihatin achievements recently.
First published in the Daily Maverick 168 weekly newspaper.
The second Covid-19 wave has receded, prompting the unbanning of the sale of alcohol. There is scant data available showing exactly how the ban affected hospital emergency units during the second wave, but the little that there is suggests it had a similar impact during both waves. Though the short-term objective might have been achieved, a sustainable reduction in alcohol-related trauma cases is more elusive.
It has been repeated by President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize that the ban on the sale of alcohol decreased the burden of trauma cases on hospitals in the second wave of Covid-19, just as it had during the first.