President Cyril Ramaphosa’s plan to visit the Western Cape has been postponed after the WC Premier, Alan Winde went into self-quarantine on Wednesday.
Premier Alan Winde has gone into self-quarantine after coming into contact with eNCA cameraman Lungile Tom, who died of Covid-19 on Wednesday morning.
“The president has agreed to reschedule his visit, given this development, and we thank him for his understanding,” Winde said in a statement.
Winde said that he had been at the same event as Tom on Thursday last week, and received a call from eNCA on Wednesday morning to inform him of Tom’s death.
“In line with Covid-19 protocols, eNCA contacted us this morning to alert us to the fact that Lungile had been the camera operator during last Thursday’s Digicon event. These Digicons have been held digitally with the express purpose of ensuring that physical distancing can occur. Only a few television journalists are invited to attend in order to broadcast these news announcements.”
“In terms of good practice for workplaces, screenings will also be arranged for those Western Cape government staff members who were in the room. Should any of them require testing, in terms of our established protocols, this will be arranged.”
“Because I had a one-on-one interview with Lungile after the press conference, being in close range for some time, I am deemed a close contact and will now self-quarantine. It has been nearly seven days since our contact, and I will therefore go into self-quarantine for another seven days.”
Winde has assured members of the public that he has yet to experience any symptoms associated with COVID-19, but, if he does, he will have a test performed “straight away”.
The President was due to visit the province on Friday, 15 May.
Lungile Tom, eNCA Cameraman dies reportedly due to Covid-19
In a statement on Wednesday, eNCA confirmed the death o cameraman Lungile Tom, saying Tom was admitted to hospital on Sunday night with symptoms relating to COVID-19. He was reportedly tested and admitted to intensive care when his test results came back positive for COVID-19.
Premier Winde thanked the broadcaster for being proactive, even while mourning their colleague.
He said, “Lungile was a regular fixture at many Western Cape government events and was well respected and liked by members of the Western Cape cabinet and the entire Western Cape communications team. We send our condolences to his family and to his colleagues today. He will be missed.”
