ANC’s shambolic reopening of SA’s borders is killing desperately needed tourism
4 October 2020
The cancellation with immediate effect of key Emirates flights to South Africa comes as a direct result of national government’s shambolic management of the reopening of South Africa’s borders for leisure travel in a time when our tourism industry is in dire straits.
Regulations published by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA), which require airline crew to follow the same health protocol as passengers upon arrival to South Africa, are completely illogical considering the stringent measures already taken by international airlines to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
This senseless regulation is yet another nail in the coffin of South African tourism at the hands of an uncaring government completely out of touch with the very pressing need for economic recovery after an unnecessarily long Coronavirus lockdown has ravaged our economy.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be writing to the Minister of Tourism, Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, requesting an urgent explanation as to how her Department, in cooperation with CoGTA, plans to clarify these regulations to save South Africa’s ailing tourism industry.