Ballito Rage Cancelled, Plett Rage Continues as Omicron Fears for Young People Rise

• Yesterday Ballito Rage was cancelled, but despite this, the Plett Rage festival is scheduled to go ahead as planned for nearly 1 000 matriculants
• The festival organisers claim they have put measures in place to prevent a Covid-19 outbreak, including a vaccine mandate
• However, President Cyril Ramaphosa warned against such gatherings over fears that they could lead to cluster outbreaks

CAPE TOWN - Yesterday (1 December), an announcement was made that Ballito Rage, a post-exams festival for matric students, was cancelled due to several staff members and attendees testing positive for Covid-19. Despite this, its sister festival, Plett Rage in Plettenberg Bay, is going ahead as planned.

The new Omicron variant of Covid-19 is reported to be highly transmissible, particularly in young people. President Ramaphosa warned matrics in his speech on Sunday (28 November) that these post-exam parties can be superspreader events that cause cluster outbreaks of the virus.

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On Friday (3 December), nearly 1 000 matriculants will arrive in Plettenberg Bay for the Plett Rage festival, TimesLIVE reports. Matthew Mole, Francois van Coke and GoodLuck are all billed as headline acts.

Why Plett Rage organisers decided not to cancel the festival

Ronen Klugman, the founder of Plett Rage, said that the organising team feel they are in a tricky situation. On the one hand, they do not consider 1 000 people a large gathering and therefore feel that regulations around big events should not apply to them.

On the other hand, there is a vaccine mandate for the festival, which states that only vaccinated ticket holders will be granted access. The organisers say that they possess the documentation that is required to hold such an event under the current circumstances.

According to News24, attendees and staff members will need to take PCR tests to make sure they do not have Covid-19 before entering the festival.

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Sihle Zikalala warns KZN matrics against post-exam parties, fears over high Omicron cases in young people

Reactions to Plett Rage continuing on despite Ballito Rage's cancellation

@docbug64 said:

"Parents to blame."

@murendimukumela shared:

"So basically we will be going to a higher level because a bunch of people wanna have a good time."

@adamiskindacool asked:

@NtateRamphaleng believes:

"They want to cash in on the 'no refunds' clause."

@MambheleM said:

"Plett Rage organiser is irresponsible saying he doesn't understand why everyone is up in arms. People are dying, health workers are overwhelmed."

@collettdawson shared:

Sihle Zikalala warns KZN matrics against post-exam parties

Yesterday, Briefly News reported that Sihle Zikalala, the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, has warned the province's matric students against holding parties to celebrate the end of their final exams, as he fears it could lead to cluster breakouts of Covid-19.

The new Omicron variant reportedly transmits easier amongst younger people, which is the source of Zikalala's concern. He said that post-matric parties have a tendency to ignore Covid-19 protocols, which makes them dangerous.

There is a trend of matric students going to the province to celebrate the end of their final exams and high school careers. Binge-drinking and overfull venues make these parties Covid-19 breeding grounds.

Source: Briefly News