ROLAND MPOFU

SAPS members put on face masks and gloves as they prepare to support volunteers from the Covid-19 Action Group while the latter hand out information leaflets and soap to residents of the Diepsloot township in Joburg at the weekend. The action group, working together with Operation SA and Laudium Disaster Management, aims to hand out 1 million cakes of soap over the next few weeks to help prevent the spread of the Covid-19 disease in the vulnerable high density areas of the country’s biggest city. EPA

roland.mpofu@inl.co.za

THERE are growing calls for the end of the National State of Disaster. Many health experts express mixed reactions about the continuous mandatory wearing of masks outdoors in preventing the spread of the Covid-19.

They believe it gives excessive power to certain executive members, with little evidence to show that it curbs the spread of the virus.

Calls from various sectors have been mounting recently to end the lockdown restrictions as they have not shown any beneficial impact in reducing the spread of Covid-19.

Last month the cabinet decided to put the country on adjusted alert level 1 due to a decline in the number of cases that indicated the country had passed the peak of the fourth wave at a national level.

While some significant changes on Covid-19 regulations were made, such as lifting the curfew and gatherings increased to 1 000 indoors and 2 000 outdoors, the wearing of masks remained mandatory, and failure to wear it remains a criminal offence.

As of Friday evening, January 28, the country had recorded 3 789 new positive cases, bringing the country's case load to 3 598 288. The Department of Health said at least 133 people had died due to Covid-19, pushing South Africa's death toll to 94 784. The cumulative number of recoveries now stands at 3 436 326, with a recovery rate of 95.5%

The Department says it has administered 29 784 202 million vaccinations to date.

Associate Professor Benjamin Smart at the University of Johannesburg in the Department of philosophy, said masks, when worn properly, can prevent infections and have no doubt saved many people from contracting Covid-19. However, he conceded that it is unclear to what extent masks are effective against the Omicron variant. Given that masks are removed anywhere where food and drink are served, the benefit of mask-wearing is hard to quantify.

"However, with universities going back to face-to-face lectures and a growing number of well-attended public events, it is probably prudent to retain the mask regulation until a higher proportion of the population is vaccinated," he said.

Smart said the government should end the National State of Disaster as it provides unnecessary excessive powers to the executive members, but with little signs to show its effectiveness in curbing the spread of the virus.

"The state of disaster gives excessive power to certain members of the executive, and this should be removed as soon as possible. The Covid-19 spending must thus be properly budgeted for, and the state of disaster ended as soon as possible. Should the need arise, another state of disaster could always be declared," said Smart.

Another expert who lambasted the ongoing lockdowns is Nick Hudson, chairperson for Pandemics Data & Analytics (Panda). He said that infection and recovery have brought about a high degree of herd immunity and endemic status for the virus in South Africa; there was no sense in continuing with the State of Disaster. He said it was being used to perpetuate measures that simply do not work, in any event.

"The argument that we should wait until some magical percentage of people has been vaccinated is without merit. Because the vaccines do not meaningfully prevent infection or transmission that lacks a mechanism of action to do so, they contribute only negligibly to herd immunity, if at all. Given that the government was receiving bad advice from the modellers, it is perhaps understandable that they implemented the State of Disaster. Still, there has never been a rational excuse for continuing it," said Hudson.

When asked if it was time for the end of the mandatory wearing of masks, Hudson said cloth masks have no material beneficial impact on the spread of SARS-CoV-2, which takes place by way of minute aerosol particles which do not fall onto surfaces but float in the air.

He added that people might catch large droplets (a small percentage of the total), but when a person breathes across the wet membrane created in this way, those droplets are simply aerosolised.

"That is why we have never seen any beneficial impact in the epidemic curves from the implementation or suspension of mask mandates anywhere in the world. No high-quality evidence supports their use, with every randomised controlled trial ever conducted regarding their efficacy against respiratory viruses producing the same answer: no statistically significant benefit.

“Masks do, however, entail harm. For example, they disrupt communication, a meaningful part of which occurs through facial expressions. This is particularly harmful to children, retarding social and mental development," he said.

However, the South African Medical Association (Sama) chairperson Dr Angelique Coetzee said even if we might be at the tail end of the fourth wave, people need to understand the importance of properly wearing masks.

"For the average person, their masks should prevent them from spreading the virus if they are infected, provided they wear it right, use a clean mask every day, don't touch it. Health Care Workers should wear N95 masks, preventing them from spreading or getting infected," she said.

Even though there are prediction of the fifth wave in May, Coetzee said the lockdown restrictions were no longer necessary.

"At some stage, it must be lifted, providing the provisions to some Regulations of the Health Act are in place, as well as other departments. Otherwise, it might be implemented again," said Coetzee.

#4x4

Growing calls to end the National State of Disaster