JOHANNESBURG – Black First Land First (BLF) said on Sunday that it would be engaged in numerous activities to highlight the failure of the government to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic effectively.
The BLF said in a statement that the consequence of this failure was that South Africa was now among the top 10 countries in the world with the worst record of infections.
“The government is digging graves instead of stopping mass death. The plan to dig mass graves is an indication of the government‘s attitude to the pandemic.
“BLF is engaged in a campaign to #CloseTheGraves and has kickstarted the process with a petition to the government. We demand that the government stops digging mass graves and saves lives instead.
“The petition aims to gather 10 000 signatures after which it will be delivered to the president. Furthermore, BLF together with other stakeholders will perform a prayer service and undertake a cleansing ceremony at a cemetery on Mandela Day,” reads the statement.
The BLF said details to be provided at a virtual press conference on Thursday.
The Gauteng Department of Health on Thursday clarified that there were no million graves already dug in the province in anticipation of more deaths in relation to the rising number of Covid-19 infections.
“The province does not have over a million already open dug graves. The 'over a million graves' refers to the collective capacity municipalities can take,” said Kwara Kekana, spokesperson for Gauteng Health MEC Dr Bandile Masuku.
The BLF has put up the petition on: http://chng.it/HvjWqpG8