COVID-19: As Omicron spreads, South African minister affirms 'there is no need to panic'

On November 29, South African Health Minister Joe Phaahla addressed media reporters and said that there was “absolutely no need to panic” over the new Omicron variant of COVID-19. Comparing the situation to the detection of the Beta variant last year, he said, “We have been here before”. The Beta variant of the coronavirus was detected in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa in October 2020.

World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday labelled the Omicron variant of coronavirus as a “variant of concern”. Since then, several countries including Israel, Britain, Saudi Arabia, Canada have imposed a complete or partial ban on passenger flights to and from several African nations.

As the world scrambles to contain the infection, a top South African lawmaker has ascertained that there was “no need to panic”. It is imperative to note that the newly discovered strain, which has over 50 mutations, was first discovered in South Africa.

Variant B.1.1.529, dubbed as Omicron by the WHO, was first identified in South Africa after it spread among younger people in Gauteng. A routine sequencing conducted by the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa monitored the strange changes in SARS-CoV-2 original genetic makeup, and eventually several South African laboratories observed a new virus lineage, B.1.1.529 of the novel coronavirus, in some of the samples.

South Africa refrains from imposing lockdown 

On Sunday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that his nation will remain at the lowest “Level One” of its five lockdown strategies to combat the pandemic. While addressing a national broadcast, Ramaphosa said that South Africa will keep its lockdown restrictions unchanged at level 1, but will look to offer booster shots to the elderly, and strengthen rules around vaccinations. This will include mandatory vaccinations for certain activities, the South African President added. 

“In taking the decision not to impose further restrictions at this stage, we considered the fact that when we encountered previous waves of infection, vaccines were not widely available and far fewer people were vaccinated,” Ramaphosa said. “That is no longer the case. Vaccines are available to anyone aged 12 and above, free of charge, at thousands of sites across the country.”

(Image: AP )