The Democratic Alliance has called on Tourism Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane to shed light onthe “badly written” regulations on business and leisure travel accommodation during the coronavirus pandemic.

IOL reports that DA shadow minister of tourism Manny De Freitas said in a statement that Kubayi-Ngubane needs to “decipher the hieroglyphics” of the advanced level 3 tourism regulations. The regulations were announced last week.

De Freitas said that at a media conference hosted last week by the minister, she said that leisure accommodation would not be permitted. He said, “This contradicts the regulations which state that licensed and accredited accommodation establishments are allowed to operate for intra-provincial travel for business as well as leisure purposes.”

The regulations are reportedly also not clear regarding conference facilities and do not indicate whether conference accommodation could also be used for leisure purposes. The DA claims it has been swamped with queries from businesses seeking clarity concerning the regulations.

Businesses may have to adopt the position taken by the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, if there is no clarity on the issue by government. IOL reports that the TBCSA had understood the regulations as permitting accredited and licensed accommodation for intra-provincial domestic leisure and business travel.

Umm Muhammed Umar