Lockdown levels

The top topic and phrase for the day by volume was “Level 4”.

Official information from @MbalulaFikile trended second and @GovernmentZA trended eighth by reach.

Posts by @MandyWiener challenging the new regulations were ninth by reach.

South Africans eagerly awaited the media briefing on Level 4 and the easing of lockdown regulations on April 30. 

Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma took the nation through the Level 4 regulations in a live broadcast on all social media channels. 

The Presidency tweeted infographics simultaneously. 

The briefing received widespread engagement, especially around the ban on tobacco sales and allocated exercise times. South Africans noted with dismay that Minister Dlamini Zuma did not appear fit for duty, in contrast with the overall admiration President Cyril Ramaphosa received after his national addresses. 

The goodwill garnered by President Ramaphosa eroded significantly after the address by Minister Dlamini Zuma as many South Africans took to social media to express their frustration. 

Among the most vocal critics of the Level 4 regulations was DA leader John Steenhuisen: “Government is demanding enormous economic and civil liberty sacrifices” by copying hard lockdown rules for Level 4. 

Many labelled Level 4 rules as arbitrary and inexplicable. The restrictive early morning exercise window raised questions about provisions for those who had to work in the morning and whether it would be safe to exercise in the dark in winter.

Tobacco Ban

The ban on tobacco sales was the primary driver of the “Level 4” topic of conversation on Wednesday.

The announcement by @SABCNews was the fourth biggest post by reach, followed by a post by @mzwandileMasina supporting the ban.

The about-turn by government on tobacco sales was not received well. 

On 29 April Minister Dlamini Zuma said government had received thousands of public comments opposing the sale of cigarettes and alcohol. 

Executive Mayor of Ekurhuleni Mzwandile Masina tweeted: “Thank you SA Gov for listening to ordinary citizen(s) on tobacco – not to allow the sale of cigarettes during level 4. This will contribute significantly in flattening the curve during this Covid-19”. 

@Mbawolive defended the Government’s about turn: “Whatever benefits the public. This is not a squabble between the President and his Minister, it’s about the well-being of the public. If a ban on smoking is the way to go then I’m glad to have a government that listens to experts and that can be convinced otherwise”.

The decision to continue the ban on sale of cigarettes received significant pushback from South Africans. 

The EFF’s Dali Mpofu questioned whether the president and his Cabinet were in alignment. He posted pictures of the President’s address a few days ago stating the ban would be lifted, alongside a picture of Minister Dlamini Zuma announcing on Wednesday that it would remain in place. 

Others took the opportunity to remind the public of Minister Dlamini Zuma’s close relationship with alleged illicit tobacco kingpin Adriano Mazzotti.

@GeorgeDell666 said: “The illegal cigarette trade is way more lucrative for the MPs than trying to get their hands on taxes…”. 

The DA’s Schreiber tweeted: “There is zero difference between banning cigarette sales in order to profit from illegal blackmarket trade and giving illegal tenders to the Guptas. State Capture rolls on, just with other criminals in charge.”

@RenalsoGouws tweeted: “The EFF must be happy that cigarettes will still not be allowed under level 4. I am assuming their funders are very very very happy with this decision!”. 

Education 

The third biggest posts by reach related to the reopening of the school year.

‘Basic Education’ was the ninth largest topic by volume.

Around 11am @metrobabe posted that learners will return to school on 6 May. She later clarified that these dates were for children in Grades 7 and 12. @Iam_Gadifele posted a photo of a TV screen, which he tweeted @metrobabe and @eNCA.

@SplihDude felt the briefing was held to gauge the reaction of the public. 

Parents and students responded with mixed emotions. 

@MylifeAsSne asked why saving the academic year has superseded the fact that we’re living in a pandemic. @amidthechaoss echoed the sentiment:  “everything can be rescheduled”.

@SalemTsutsu_ pointed out the unfavourable consequences of teachers and lecturers not being paid for the rest of the year.

The word “academic” was mentioned throughout the day with a peak at noon.

The biggest contributors to the peak were @myNSFAS and @Riri_Mathagoe.

Western Cape Infection Rate

Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize’s tweet about infection rates and the number of deaths in the Western Cape was retweeted more than 2,400 times. 

The Western Cape has the highest infection rate, about 40% of all infections nationally, prompting the deployment of additional support to the province. 

After the Department of Health tweeted recent statistics from the Western Cape, people began to question whether the numbers were comparable to other provinces which had not tested as many people as the Western Cape. The conversation soon turned political, with debate about why people were trying to make the Western Cape look bad.

Reparations

At 11.30am @dumzamaswana shared a video of young South Africans in Turkey pleading to come home. The video has been viewed close to 13,000 times.

Responders felt the anguish of the people in the video, calling on Twitter influencers and members of the EFF to help these young people. Some pointed out that repatriation efforts for South Africans in Turkey were made a month ago, but were not effective as people had to travel to Germany at their own expense to catch a flight home. 

@EducNurture said it had arranged shelter for the students through the Turkish ambassador to South Africa. DM 

The Centre for Analytics and Behavioural Change (CABC) is a non-profit organisation incubated at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town.  The CABC stimulates positive social change through engagement, dialogue and advocacy. www.cabc.org.za