Limpopo MEC for Transport and Community Safety Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya together with Sports, Arts and Culture MEC Thandi Moraka have expressed their concerns over the violations of level 3 of the lockdown by some communities.
Lerule-Ramakhanya said they have discovered that some communities have staged soccer tournaments and as a result, the law enforcement agencies will be deployed in hotspot areas to monitor and enforce compliance.
The two MECs said the continued violation of the regulations undermine and derail government’s efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.
In a statement released yesterday, the Provincial Command Council raised concerns regarding the non-compliance and several hotspots have been identified.
Moraka has also urged community members and organizers of the tournaments to observe the set of regulations for the current level while awaiting a way forward regarding the resumption of contact sport.
“We are making a call to all communities and organizers to desist from starting soccer tournaments because it is still prohibited. Everyone should continue adhering to lockdown regulations of practice social distancing, sanitising, and washing of hands at all times,” said Moraka.
Lerule-Ramakhanya said the police will be deployed to some of the identified hotspots to monitor and enforce compliance, adding that those responsible for staging tournaments will be dealt with harshly.
“We have received complaints from the public regarding tournaments that are staged under the critical level that we are currently observing. It is unfortunate that some people have a total disregard of the lockdown regulations. We have profiled all the hotspots and our law enforcers have been activated to enforce the regulations,” she said.
“The soccer tournaments are usually held on weekends. Government is calling on communities to report such unlawful gatherings to the police for swift intervention,” she said.
