Image via Adobe Stock
COVID-19: Western Cape reports decrease in active cases
The DA in the Western Cape says a decline in active COVID-19 cases can be attributed to individuals taking personal responsibility.
Image via Adobe Stock
The Democratic Alliance (DA), on Thursday 6 August, released a statement citing the reported decrease in active COVID-19 cases in the Western Cape. The DA in the province has attributed the decline to individuals who have taken personal responsibility to help flatten the curve.
DECREASE IN COVID-19 ACTIVE CASES
DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Health Wendy Philander said the province began to see a decrease in active COVID-19 cases this week.
“The province also saw a decline in the number of patients requiring hospitalisation as well as a decrease in the death rate,” she said.
“Yesterday the Western Cape Government announced that the province still has under 100 000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and recorded 83 529 recoveries. And, due to extensive planning based on worst-case scenarios, we have not seen the need for full use of all available resources such as beds at field hospitals,” she added.
STEADY DECREASE IN DEATHS IN THE WESTERN CAPE
Philander said data from the National Institute For Communicable Diseases (NICD), from min June to 1 August 2020, shows a dramatic increase in unaccounted daily deaths in both Gauteng and the Eastern Cape, while the Western Cape demonstrates a steady decrease in both accounted and unaccounted deaths.
“Unlike other provinces, we are also witnessing a welcoming decrease in infections amongst healthcare workers in the Western Cape. The provincial government, along with overseeing sufficient and appropriate provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), has provided psycho-social support to workers to continually support the healthcare system as a whole,” she said.
“Overall, we see that the curve is indeed flattening in our province and that the provincial government’s hotspot strategy, incorporating the whole of government approach, is a model that works based on international best practice,” she added.
SHIVAMBU SLAMS GOVERNMENT FOR REDUCED TESTING
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Deputy President Floyd Shivambu said COVID-19 testing had been sliced in half which naturally portrays a false decline in infections.
Shivambu said government would soon claim a false victory against the virus when in fact, testing had been reduced.
“The daily tests have reduced by more than 50% from 40 000 to under 20 000 per day. The ANC corrupt politicians will later come to say they’ve contained COVID-19, while they just reduced testing,” he said.
“The declining COVID-19 infections are deliberate distortion in SA and will misguide response,” he added.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize, however, said South Africa cannot claim success just yet.
“Whilst we are cautiously optimistic, it is still too early for us to make definite conclusions regarding the observed decline. We need to continue to track all these indicators and ensure that our testing capacity reflects a realist picture of our epidemiological status,” he said.
