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South Africa is currently united in a battle against a common enemy, and if we are to survive a full month of lockdown, we may need some extra tipple to see us through.

There are the creative, illegal means – like the bootlegging in the ‘burbs that we covered yesterday – to acquiring that extra booze (and some cigarettes), but the calls for President Cyril Ramaphosa to loosen restrictions on alcohol sales has grown stronger since his announcement of the lockdown extension.

The Gauteng Liquor Forum (GLF) actually sent a lawyer’s letter demanding that the regulations are removed, amended or lifted, with Ramaphosa due to respond by midday yesterday or face legal action.

Maybe the GLF can do us all a favour and arrest Bheki Cele?

In response, the Presidency asked that the GLF hold off on legal action until Friday, with more below via City Press:

…the office of the state attorney, representing government, explains that the president is still working on a plan to alleviate the strain faced by business owners and that his response would be dependent on his engagement with various stakeholders.

“The national command council, the presidency and other relevant parties are meeting again this week, specifically to discuss the details of government’s economic assistance programme. This includes assistance offered to small businesses such as those of your clients, and other measures to mitigate the effects of the lockdown extension,” the state attorney said.

The GLF, which is a non-profit organisation that represents around 20 000 township shebeens and taverns, stated in their letter that the alcohol sale ban was unconstitutional, and asked that government consider reinstating pre-lockdown limited sale hours (9AM to 6PM during the week, and 9AM to 1PM on weekends).

They weren’t the only body to raise concerns about the alcohol sale ban, with the South African Liquor Brand Owners Association (SALBA) also requesting that government reconsider their stance.

Moneyweb reports that SALBA says restrictions “should balance both the impact on effectively mitigating health risks and preserving the stability of the legal liquor industry”.

Their proposal to government laid out the following recommendations:

• Liquor sales to be allowed only in off-consumption sales outlets, including online platforms, which will limit travel by consumers;
• Licensed taverns and holders of micro-manufacturing licences should be granted a special dispensation to operate strictly as off-consumption outlets subject to the strict social distancing requirements;
• Trading between 09:00 and 18:00 on weekdays and 09:00 and 16:00 on Saturdays, with no liquor sales on Sundays and public holidays;
• Prohibition on price promotions which act as a direct incentive to purchase more liquor volumes at lower cost and the offering of liquor products for free;
• Hand sanitiser to be available at outlets to encourage hygiene among consumers and retail employees; and
• The number of patrons allowed in an off-consumption liquor outlet to be limited to a maximum of one person per square metre.

Some of those may be a stretch, but I suppose it’s worth a shot.

Not that you should get your hopes up, however, with Fin24 reporting:

Economists say the National Command Council is highly unlikely to lift the ban on alcohol sales during the lockdown, because the liquor industry is not affected any differently to other non-essential businesses that are not allowed to trade…

Dr Sifiso Ntombela, trade economist at the National Agricultural Marketing Council, said the referral of the Forum’s demands to the Command Council isn’t in any way an indication that government is considering lifting the ban…

Ntombela said the purpose of a lockdown is prioritising saving lives. With alcohol having an indirect impact on some of the social ills in the country, an intoxicated public could reverse the impact that the lockdown has had in containing the spread of the virus, he said…

Xhanti Payi, economist and founding director at Nascence Advisory and Research, said there are many other industries affected as much as sheebens and taverns, and the Forum would have to present a compelling argument why liquor traders are an exception.

Concerns about the loss in tax revenue have also been raised, and that angle is being pushed hard with regards to the sale of tobacco, by organisations like British American Tobacco (BAT) and Tax Justice South Africa.

You can read more on that here.

It seems only fair that South Africans, now asked to endure another two weeks of lockdown, should be cut some slack with regards to the purchasing of alcohol and tobacco products.

We should know by Friday what comes next on this front.

[sources:citypress&moneyweb&fin24]