The government has warned against flouting COVID-19 rules among them the recently imposed partial lockdown and social interaction checks expected to tame the spread of the virus.

On Saturday, the taskforce said the East African Community was still experiencing second wave and it was prudent to be cautious as a country.

It is on this premise that the government drafted stiffer penalties for would-be offenders of the COVID-pandemic protocols.

‘‘Most institutions both public and private are no longer providing hand washing facilities or sanitisers, the public is no longer wearing facemasks or maintaining social distance,’’ the team noted in their statement.

In this regard, undersecretaries, executive directors or accounting officers in government institutions will be liable for suspension if their departments are found culpable. This will also apply to the director generals in case of the state institutions. In the cases of Nongovernmental Organisations (NGOs), persons in charge of such organisations will be taken for questioning or prosecutions should they fail to heed to the protocols. This could even lead to the suspension of the licence, the statement notes.

The taskforce also proposes that individuals who fail to adhere to the protocols should be denied entry into business premises for services or they be arrested if they turn violent.

Committee team

The committee has been tasked with meeting stakeholders, informing the public about the second wave and enforcing the protocols without favour. The team includes Dr Richard Lako (Chair), Dr Anthony Garang (Secretary), Dr Ader Achiek, Dr Mabior Bol and Dr Akuoch Nyanhom.

This comes at a time that the country is posting higher figures above depicting the rise in infection, and possibly because of increase in testing capacity.

According to Worldometers.info, South Sudan currently has 5,413 cases, 3,769 recoveries and 74 deaths.