Newsbreak

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Rachel Vadi - Emergency personnel are an essential services that will be keep a watch on South Africans during this 21 day lock down. While many are saying they are ready to place their lives on the line to help curb spread the spread of COVID-19, they are asking South Africans to stay at home to help flatten the curve...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Executive Producer Salma Patel - As the country goes into lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus - which has moved from transmission to travellers to internal infections - over 400 doctors have joined forces to volunteer their services through a helpline. Called "Doctors on Call" the phone lines are operational during weekdays from 8am to 5pm. O...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Taresh Harreeparshad - Retailers found guilty of price-hiking during the Covid-19 outbreak in South Africa could be fined ten per cent of their annual turn over. The National Consumer Commission is currently investigation eleven retailers and businesses for unjustified price increases due to the demand for goods ahead of the national lockdown....

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer, Taresh Harreeparshad - Disease control organisation - Right To Care - says it is concerned about the close contact of hordes of shoppers at malls today. This as the national lockdown comes into effect from midnight. Dr. Thembi Xulu, the organisations executive director says this is uneccessary since government has given the assurance that esse...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer, Taresh Harreeparshad - China, where the coronavirus is said to have originated - is upbeat they are flattening the curve after a lockdown of almost two months. Last month China reported daily cases of 15,000 new infections. This has dropped to just over 20 cases daily. So much so that the Hubei Health Commission announced it would lift curbs o...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer, Rachel Vadi - Many countries have implemented nationwide lockdowns or like in Malaysia, "Movement Control Orders". With the daily confirmed infections growing at an alarming rate, the Malaysian government implemented these their lockdown on the 18th of March. The order was supposed to last for 14 days, but the date has since been extended to 1...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer, Taliesha Naidoo - Fears are mounting as South African's raise more questions about the global pandemic - COVID-19. General Practitioner, Doctor Prithi Ramlachan discusses the do's and don'ts to keep yourself healthy and safe during the 21 day nationwide lockdown............

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer, Taliesha Naidoo - What rights do South African's have during the 21 day nationwide lockdown? Lawson Naidoo - executive secretary for the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution's (CASAC) explains.......

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Tashlan Naidoo - Newsbreak in the past few days has been inundated with messages from the public, related to employers forcing people work during the 21 day lockdown. We then spoke to a labour lawyer who says if one does not fall under the "essential workers" categories such as pharmacies, laboratories, banks, supermarkets, petrol stations and...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Taliesha Naidoo - As you prepare to stay indoors for the next three weeks, your waste generation at home is projected to increase. But what happens to the waste that may be contaminated by COVID-19? Leon Grobbelaar, President of Institute of Waste Management of Southern Africa (IWMSA) says contaminated waste could be especially harmful for the...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Matthew Veeran - A young Durban-based doctor has spoken to Newsbreak ahead of the impending lockdown to discuss South Africa's ability and readiness to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. Dr Diresh Rajput says that while the President's lockdown is the only logical solution, it will all be for nothing if people fail to comply with the la...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Rachel Vadi - Meanwhile, Lancet Laboratories responded to the claims via an emailed statement. Rachel Vadi with the details...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Rachel Vadi - A backlog in coronavirus testing has increased the anxiety of many awaiting their results amidst the increasing infection rate in the country. 39-year-old Zairul Dawood of Phoenix, north of Durban says he has been waiting for more than a week for his results from a private testing facility. He says he has been self-isolating as a...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Taliesha Naidoo - Meanwhile, Imtiaz Syed - the Chairperson of the eThekwini Central Cluster Community Policing Forum (CPF) says he is concerned at the alarming increase of gangsterism and gang violence in various Durban communities...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Taliesha Naidoo - In other news, KwaZulu-Natal police are investigating a case of murder after a 40-year-old man was killed and his wife critically injured during a drive-by shooting at Malvern, south of Durban. It's alleged that two unknown suspects opened fire on the couple on Ridge Road yesterday. The male victim who was driving the vehicle...

SABC News and Current Affairs — by Newsbreak Producer, Rachel Vadi - Palliative care to those in their last phase of illness - such as cancer - will continue amid the lockdown. Chairperson of the Verulam Regional Hospice, Professor Chandru Kistan says staff and nurses at the premises in Verulam, north of Durban are equipped to deal with issues related to COVID-19. He says the patient needs to supp...

SABC News and Current Affairs — by Newsbreak Producer, Tashlan Naidoo - Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize says they are tracing almost two-thousand contact cases after the department noted 15 new cases in the Free State linked to a church in Mangaung. Even with the 21 day lockdown to be implemented from Thursday midnight to curb the spread of the Coronavirus, Mkhize says the numbers of infections wi...

SABC News and Current Affairs — by Newsbreak Producer, Tashlan Naidoo - Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize says they are tracing almost two-thousand contact cases after the department noted 15 new cases in the Free State linked to a church in Mangaung. Even with the 21 day lockdown to be implemented from Thursday midnight to curb the spread of the Coronavirus, Mkhize says the numbers of infections wi...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Matthew Veeran - The ministry of Employment and Labour has assured workers that regardless of the hours of work served -- they are entitled to receive the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) benefits if their employers have been compliant. Employment and Labour minister Thulas Nxesi says the basic conditions of employment rights have been activat...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Tashlan Naidoo - The 21 day nationwide lockdown coming into effect this Thursday night is the perfect opportunity for people to embrace technology and the fourth industrial revolution. That's the advice of technology analyst Preetesh Sewraj. He says students in school and universities should make the best of this time and try and stay ahead of...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Executive Producer Salma Patel - A mother from Montford in Chatsworth, south of Durban broke down in an interview with Newsbreak when she revealed that her son, Sergeant Keith David Pillay, has been deployed by the South African National Defence Force to patrol the country during the 21-day lockdown. 64-year-old Kanagie Pillay - a mother of five and gra...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Shanell Daniel - The South African Medical Association (SAMA) says they fully welcome a total 21-day lockdown of the country to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The association had previously called for government to implement a lockdown of the country to protect citizens and medical staff from the rapidly spread global virus. SAMA Charperson Dr...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Executive Producer Salma Patel - After President Cyril Ramaphosa declared a 21 day lockdown in the country, muslim burial councils will be considering changes in burial protocols. Kamal Jaffer of Pretoria-based Central Muslim Burials says these new protocols will be communicated to grieving families. He added that strict infection control precautions wi...

SABC News and Current Affairs — By Newsbreak Producer Tashlan Naidoo - South African's unemployment rate of 29.1% is predicted to rise, as job losses and low economic growth is forecast following a 21 day national lockdown. This as President Cyril Ramaphosa launched the new "Solidarity Fund" - an independent relief fund created to combat COVID19 . Ramaphosa has urged businesses, organisations and...

SABC News and Current Affairs — Newsbreak hosted a special broadcast on Monday the 23rd March 2020 when President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a 21 Day LockDown for South Africa to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The show was hosted by Newsbreak's Taliesha Naidoo and Salma Patel and produced by Shanell Daniel and Rachel Vadi.