The mayor of eThekwini municipality Mxolisi Kaunda has tested positive for the coronavirus, his results showed on Tuesday morning.

Mayoral spokesperson Mluleki Mntungwa confirmed Kaunda’s condition on Tuesday and said the mayor would continue his duties while in isolation at home.

Kaunda urged residents across the city to abide by Covid-19 regulations when attending funerals, saying that mourners should keep to 50 and below.

“This second wave of Covid-19 is so vicious that by now at least we all have close family members, friends and relatives who have succumbed,” Kaunda said in a statement on Tuesday.

He urged everyone to work together to flatten the curve by adhering to all safety protocols.

Kaunda also warned residents against conspiracy theories about the pandemic because it went against virus protocols.

“We continue to be guided by science as advised by the Department of Health. It is unfortunate that some people are spreading false (information) about the installation of 5G and linking it to the spread of Covid-19 in the city,” the mayor added.

Kaunda’s remarks came after an eThekwini African National Congress ward councillor, Sfiso Mngadi, spread false information about the virus, saying that it was “not real” and that the sickness was caused by the installation of 5G towers.

Mngadi took it a step further, antagonising the white population of South Africa by saying they were first in line to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.

“As leaders of eThekwini we need to take action against this disease. It is not Covid. We are getting this thing from 5G towers, (some) installed during this period in preparation of the second wave.

“White people were vaccinated about five months ago. There was a truck that distributed the vaccine in boxes and white people from all over the province, including places like Ixopo and Vryheid, went there to receive these boxes. It was given to white people only,” Mngadi said in an audio clip circulating on social media.

Kaunda said that this had created an impression which was averse to technological innovation and that eThekwini was determined to become a “smart city” at the forefront of the fourth industrial revolution.