Cape Town - President Cyril Ramaphosa's planned visit to the Western Cape this week has been postponed after Premier Alan Winde has been forced to go into self-quarantine.
Premier Winde was forced to self-quarantine after his one-on-one interview with eNCA cameraman Lungile Tom, 45, who died in hospital on Wednesday morning after testing positive for Covid-19.
"Because I had a one-on-one interview with Lungile after the [Thursday's] 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...
" I will continue to work full steam ahead, from home. Because of our developed systems, I can continue to join all meetings, and will be overseeing our new hotspot targeted strategy.
"Lastly I have also been in contact with the president to alert him to this situation as he was due to visit the province on Friday. The president has agreed to reschedule his visit given this development, and we thank him for his understanding," Winde said.
Last week, Winde said that Ramaphosa and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize will be visiting the province, and he was looking forward to welcoming them to the province, "where we will be sharing the steps we have taken to prepare for the peak of the pandemic".
The premier added that in the coming weeks and months, many more people will be infected across the country and it is important that businesses respond appropriately when a staff member tests positive.
"The Western Cape Government has devised detailed protocols that indicate how to reduce the risk of infection in the workplace, as well as what steps to follow should an employee test positive.
These can all be found here: https://coronavirus.westerncape.gov.za/files/atoms/files/Preventing%20and%20managing%20coronavirus%20infection%20in%20the%20workplace%20-%206%20May%202020.pdf
Anyone experiencing symptoms which include a fever, cough, shortness of breath or sore throat is advised to contact the Western Cape provincial hotline on 021 928 4102 for advice on what steps to follow.