The party is asking the Western Cape High Court to declare the continued ban on trade for hair salons and other businesses providing personal grooming invalid and unconstitutional, the official opposition's spokesperson on trade and industry, Dean Macpherson, said.

Macpherson said the DA had given cooperative governance minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma until last Wednesday afternoon to provide reasons for the continued ban on the industry. 

"The minister has also failed to meet a self-imposed deadline to publish regulations for the industry as she had promised by 5 June 2020.

"The DA therefore has been left with no choice but to take this legal step to save the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people who have suffered at the hands of this government that does not care about them, and could not be bothered to provide any reasons for their hardship," he said.

Macpherson said the ban violated section 22 of the Constitution, which allows every person to practise their trade, occupation or profession freely.

"In our papers, we have argued that the blanket prohibition on the entire personal care industry is irrational and arbitrary which is prohibited from operating indefinitely, subject to the whims of some unidentified minister that should provide 'directions' for the industry.

"This ban therefore cannot be considered constitutional if the 'regulated law' undermines a person's right to trade indefinitely."

African News Agency