The government executed a spectacular U-turn on Wednesday on its tweeted stance that the twin bans on the sale of alcohol and cigarettes would remain in place for as long as the country is under lockdown.
In an update issued some five hours after the initial tweet, the government said it wished to correct the message and stated that the prohibition applied to the current level 3 Covid-19 lockdown regulations.
The initial tweet was then removed.
It had prompted a swift objection from the Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association (FITA) that there had been earlier top-level assurances to the contrary.
"We call upon government to immediately clarify a tweet posted on the official government Twitter account (@GovernmentZA) earlier today stating that the ban on the sale of alcohol and cigarette (sic) will remain in place throughout the lockdown period," the association said in a statement.
The original tweet said the reason for maintaining the unpopular prohibition on alcohol and tobacco was to “save lives and protect the health and well-being of our people”.
"This statement contradicts government’s previous position on this issue, with inter alia President Cyril Ramaphosa and Minister Jackson Mthembu both stating on a number of occasions publicly that it was only a matter of time before the ban on the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products was lifted."
