25 Mar 2020

 Adhering to the new liquor regulations could help curb COVID-19 spread.

Senior Superintendent Banneetse Keakile of Botswana Police Service said in an interview that business owners in his District 14 jurisdiction were complying to the new regulations.

He said even though some of them had not seen the communication, they complied with ease.

“The regulations came as an emergency and as the police we had to implement immediately and we went around to ensure compliance. Honestly, this was my first time to see such high level of cooperation by bar operators. Even though others were not aware of the new developments, they immediately closed when we showed them the communication,” he said.

He noted that they also gave bar owners the responsibility to communicate the regulations with the patrons.

Senior Supt Keakile said on Sunday they found a few churches, which did not honour the minimum gathering number as stipulated by the regulations. 

Nonetheless, he said, they complied upon confrontation by the police.

He noted that if Batswana could continue with this level of cooperation and adhering to the health and safety standards then the country would effectively fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Additionally, he said, the rate of criminal activities such as rape, burglary, robbery and assaults had declined over the weekend.

 This, he noted, showed that criminals took advantage of drinking sprees to commit offences.

He said they would continue to patrol villages and sensitise people to ensure compliance to the new regulations. 

He noted that even though daily patrols affected their manpower, it was necessary since police visibility also reduced crime rate.

“Even though these patrols result in manpower shortage in the offices, it is an essential exercise because not only does it ensure compliance of the new regulations, but also reduces criminal activities due to police visibility,” he said. ends