PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa’s spokesperson, George Charamba has said the 21-day national lockdown which comes into effect on Monday, does not mean a complete shutdown of the country as some key economic activities needed no interruption.
Mnangagwa on Friday put the country on a 21-day lockdown in a government attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The country has recorded seven confirmed cases and one death inside a week.
However, Charamba has said he has been inundated with questions by the public since the announcement on the fate of workers and businesses.
“Since daybreak, I have been fielding queries regarding fate of workers in essential areas like telecommunications, banking, etc, etc,” said Charamba on Twitter.
“Kindly note the term essential services is a legal term which includes key economic activities including telecommunications. Besides, kindly also note the Govt has left it to employers across sectors to regulate their workplaces in line with guidelines from our health expert.
“Lockdown does not mean Shutdown of all productive activity! Otherwise how do you avoid locking down life itself?” said Charamba.
Zimbabweans have been complaining about the national lockdown, saying although necessary, it was prematurely announced as it did not give them enough time to prepare for business and stocking of provisions during the mandatory 21 days. – Newzim
