Times Of Swaziland: KING COMMANDS ESWATINI’S PARTIAL LOCKDOWN

KING COMMANDS ESWATINI’S PARTIAL LOCKDOWN
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Sibongile Sukati on 25/03/2020 09:11:00


MBABANE – It took less than 24 hours for the Eswatini Government to follow in
the steps of its South African counterpart by announcing a partial lockdown.
During a press conference held last night in the Cabinet Offices, Prime Minister
Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini announced that His Majesty King Mswati III and
Ingwenyama had commanded government to introduce a partial lockdown. He said
this would be with effect from Friday March 27, 2020. The PM, however, clarified
that this would occur at midnight on Friday, which therefore means Saturday will
be the official day that it starts. The lockdown will be for 20 days and
ironically gatherings of 20 or more people were also temporarily banned. The PM
said the King had commanded government to introduce the partial lockdown on
selected sectors of the economy to curtail the spread of the coronavirus. The PM
said the King had emphasised that the economy must continue to be strong and
robust to ensure that the partial lockdown did not ground the kingdom.
Lockdown
The PM said the partial lockdown included 14 pillars;  one of them being being
that, beginning on Friday midnight, for 20 days, all unnecessary movements and
visits outside the perimeters of homes or residences were restricted except to
provide or acquire essential services such as healthcare, food, or banking
services, and for the personnel performing such services. “We encourage all
employers to allow as many employees as possible to work from home,” said
Dlamini. The PM said government understood that the introduction of these
measures may cause some inconvenience, and hurt the economy but the safety and
health of all emaSwati was the ultimate priority. “Government is working
closely with the private sector to find solutions to mitigate the negative
impact of this pandemic on business,” he said.
He said essential industries were expected to continue operating while observing
the proper hygiene standards that would protect employees from the pandemic.
This, according to Dlamini, will include civil servants. “Government will
engage further to ensure that proper hygiene measures are complied with. The
Ministry of Commerce will provide guidance on which industries fall under
essential services,” said Dlamini. The PM further stated that following the
announcement by the South African Government of a lockdown, government advised
that only goods and cargo as well as returning citizens and legal residents
would be allowed through the borders. “Returning citizens and residents will
be subjected to a mandatory 14-day quarantine at designated locations except for
those who are able to self-isolate,” said Dlamini.