Former Shoprite chief executive Whitey Basson has joined the calls against South Africa’s ban on alcohol sales and the damage it can to do the country’s economy.<\/p>\n
He has now signed an affidavit in support of a court case against the ban which is being brought by the Southern African Agri Initiative (Saai).<\/p>\n
Basson, who is involved in wine production, told 702 <\/a><\/strong>that he agrees with government policies around handwashing, social distancing and the wearing of masks.<\/p>\n He further acknowledged that the government has a difficult task in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and reopening the economy.<\/p>\n “What I don’t agree with is that when someone gets figures and facts put to them, that it can’t be shared with us what is the cause of the decision that the government takes.<\/p>\n “Being a country with a culture of disagreeing, we can appoint a person who is neutral to the argument, like a judge, to ask who is right and who is wrong.”<\/p>\n He said that the government has been slow in communicating information around the ban. He added that it was ‘not good enough’ to simply say that the ban will be lifted but not provide an indication of when the prohibition will end.<\/p>\n “You can’t lift the ban on Monday and expect people to be selling in two weeks time. There is too little time for people to make rational decisions, and if we don’t make rational decisions now, it is going to get substantially worse.”<\/p>\n He further called on government to designate ‘green zones’, where there are not many coronavirus cases and where there is no possibility of a shortage of beds.<\/p>\n “The different provinces should have different strategies.”<\/p>\n More harm than good<\/strong><\/p>\n Earlier this week, Pick n Pay chairman Gareth Ackerman said that the government\u2019s decision to ban the sale of alcohol and tobacco in South Africa has done far more harm than good.<\/p>\n Ackerman said that while he acknowledges and supports many of the difficult decisions government has taken in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been little to justify the prolonged banning of alcohol and tobacco.<\/p>\n \u201cThe government has on several occasions reassured that they are listening and consulting. But we see little evidence of this,\u201d he said. \u201cWe cannot afford decisions that are poorly made or poorly explained. They create confusion and cynicism and erode the togetherness on which we all depend.\u201d<\/p>\n The Pick n Pay chair said that while the prohibitions on alcohol and tobacco sales hurt the group\u2019s sales and cashflow \u2013 an obvious sore point \u2013 the damage being done goes far beyond just the numbers and financial impact.<\/p>\n \u201cMore than any other decision taken by the government during this pandemic \u2013 these prohibitions risk creating cynicism and division that we cannot afford,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever the reasoning put forward by government, it is inordinately outweighed by the cynicism that it has created. I implore the government to review its decision, and to look at the issue in the spirit of responsibility and togetherness that (president Cyril Ramaphosa) has so rightly upheld.”<\/p>\n