OVER 50 000 people in Mzansi have died of Covid-19 since it was first reported almost a year ago.
Over 1,5 million people have tested positive for the virus.
The introduction of level 5 lockdown came at a heavy cost as thousands of businesses were forced to close down.
This meant workers, most of whom are breadwinners, became jobless.
This added to the already high unemployment rate, pushing it to over 30%.
Panic buying at supermarkets led to people stockpiling, with people buying items they wouldn’t normally buy, like trolleys full of toilet paper.
Although government assured citizens that shops, particularly those selling food and essential items, would remain open, places of worship were forced to close, much to the anger of worshippers and preachers.
Online church services didn’t last long as some congregants and their pastors defied regulations and gathered illegally.
In Sebokeng, a pastor was picked up like a bag of potatoes and the congregation shot at with rubber bullets as local police dispersed their gathering.
For schools, there was the real threat that the 2020 school year could be cancelled and pupils would have to repeat the same year.
Fortunately, after many meetings within the education stakeholders, it was resolved that schooling would continue under strict Covid-19 regulations.
To achieve social distancing, matric pupils were the first to go to school.
With the return of the other grades the department let pupils alternate and would go to school a few days per week.
In Gauteng, over 3 000 pupils dropped out of school and never returned when the schools reopened.
Although the worst was expected, the matrics of 2020 achieved a remarkable national pass rate of 76,2%.
Funerals took on an entirely new nature.
Many people used the internet and their smartphones to attend funerals as the number of people who could physically attend was capped at 50 people – a decision justified by the number of infections that emerged from funerals as the events became known as super spreaders.
To attend a funeral in another province, family members needed to obtain travelling permits due to interprovincial travel being prohibited.
Many bereaved family were relieved they would save a lot of the money they would normally spend on feeding people who would flock to their homes.
Public transport, particularly the taxi industry was hugely impacted by the strict regulations of alert level five.
For three weeks taxis operated only for three hours in the morning and three hours in the evenings primarily to transport essential workers such as healthcare workers and people who worked at supermarkets.
To be on the streets people needed to have a permit.
Public transport was abused as Prasa infrastructure was stripped and vandalised. It was so bad that even tracks were stolen, making it difficult for metro rail to resume services on the majority of its lines.
Sport is the one thing that brings South Africans together, although at the moment Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates may not agree, sporting activities were also halted.
Even now, while the local league has resumed, no fans are allowed to be at the stadium. They’re forced to stay at home, glued to their TV sets to catch the beautiful game.
There is light at the end of the tunnel, though with the start of the vaccination programme. More than 80 000 people, mostly healthcare workers, have been vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Vaccines are said to be the only thing that can help return the county to normal as the fight against Covid-19 continues.
