Continued pressure from opposition parties and civil rights organisations is of the utmost importance to hold the South African government accountable during the period of lockdown.
For example, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Ebrahim Patel, was put under pressure to repeal the disaster management regulations of the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) over the weekend.
The FF Plus welcomes the Sakeliga court ruling, which determines that bureaucratic lockdown regulations that infringe on business enterprises' freedom to trade must be abolished.
Now business enterprises that are allowed to continue with their operations on Level Three can trade with their self-issued permits and without the relevant state of disaster government licences or having to adhere to the additional regulations that were imposed in terms of the Disaster Management Act.
The government's attempt to micromanage the business world was thwarted by the continued pressure and this benefits small- and medium-sized business, that are not registered with the Department of Trade and Industry, in particular.
The FF Plus will keep fighting for a market-directed economy in which businesses can trade freely and without government interference.