- Professor Koleka Mlisana says stricter restrictions have to be implemented.
- The government believes social gatherings are the biggest source of the outbreaks.
- President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to address the nation on Sunday evening.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to meet with the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) on Sunday, after which he will address the nation.
This comes in the wake of rising Covid-19 infections.
Calls are mounting for Ramaphosa to implement strict lockdown measures to deal with the new Delta variant prevalent in the country.
On Saturday, acting Health Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, together with a panel of experts, provided an update on the response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"We can confirm that we are meeting the president and we will bring recommendations. We have had extensive discussions with our scientists about the new variant. The president is in charge of making these decisions, not the acting minister of health," said Kubayi-Ngubane.
The government believes that social gatherings are the biggest source of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Speculation is rife that the government will curtail the movement of people, clamp down on social gatherings, as well as a further ban on the sale of alcohol.
The co-chairperson of the Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC), Professor Koleka Mlisana, said stricter restrictions have to be implemented.
"Looking at the high transmissibility of the variant, it is not surprising that, even though we don't have data for Gauteng, the variant leads to an increase in cases. We will see these high cases in other provinces as well. We need to restrict the movement of persons and it needs to be done urgently. The government needs to prohibit gatherings."
Over the last 24 hours, the country recorded 17 958 new Covid-19 cases.
Gauteng accounted for the majority of new cases (63%), followed by the Western Cape (10 %).
The director-general of GCIS, Phumla Williams, said a special NCCC meeting will be convened on Sunday. It will receive a report from scientists on the prevalence of the Delta variant in South Africa.
"As the result of these developments, the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (Natjoints) will convene to propose recommendations on the country's response to both the Delta variant and the continued surge in Covid-19 infections."
Williams said the meeting will be followed by the President's Coordinating Council, which includes premiers, executive mayors and representatives of traditional leaderships.
A special Cabinet meeting will then take place to process the recommendations of the Natjoints.