South Africans are worlds apart: Covid-19 confirms we are socially distant, writes Miles Kubheka
The break-out term of this year is social distancing. But self distancing would have been a more appropriate term.
It’s a tale of two cities. As I drive on the empty highways and through an eerily empty Sandton City CBD, moments later I am in the bustling Alexandra township. It’s like the memo didn’t make it here. The streets are bustling with people and even the goats on the pavement are going about their business of eating the corn husks strewn all over by informal food traders. There is nothing business unusual here.
You know you are in Diepsloot because the air is no longer as crisp and fresh. There is a lingering smell of raw sewage. The road I am on has potholes that have potholes.Like in Alex, people here are going about their daily lives in the streets. There’s zero social distancing. Kids are playing in the streets as schools are closed. You quickly notice that some spaza shops are closed.
Townships were built as dormitories and not to house so many people under lockdown conditions. They were built so that people go to work and then come back to sleep. On weekends most families go to the malls or parks to escape their living conditions. During the holidays they leave and go back home in other provinces or to neighbouring countries.
The lockdown may become the new normal, meaning big gathering such as concerts, churches, movies and conferences will remain out of bounds. Restaurants will be governed by new social distancing protocols and so will corporates. The longer it takes for things to resume the wider the economic impact. If you can’t sell alcohol and must also contend with social distancing seating and new health protocols, revenue will be no more than a trickle. Some restaurant groups have insurance that covers them in the unlikely event of not being able to access their premises to trade. So, it is better for them to sit this out.
As these communal toilets are starting to crack under the strain of over-usage, construction companies as well as event companies sit with a ton of portable toilets that they could deploy in these communitiesAs people have learnt to work from home, it now makes sense that we don’t all have to take a lunch break at the same time. Dynamic trading times means you can incentivise people to come into a restaurant at different times. This helps with social distancing.
When the lockdown came into effect, most hotels and restaurants closed with stock in their freezers. They could donate this stock to communities that need it. They could make an offer to government to cook food for organisations that assist with food security.
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