Will people take more liberties when alert levels rise? Photo / Getty Images
Will people take more liberties when alert levels rise? Photo / Getty Images
Opinion
Is there anyone else out there who is a little worried about heading into level 3?
From 11.59pm last night, most of New Zealand, apart from those in Auckland and Northland, were allowed out of level 4 and can get a bit more freedom in level 3.
This isfantastic news for the business sector because it means a few more places can operate - albeit under strict rules.
But for some people, allowing more freedom is the last thing they need because they struggled to abide by the rules in level 4.
Take some mountain bikers for example. They have copped some flak - and rightly so - for flocking to the forest in great numbers to meet up with other groups of riders.
Then there were those who thought it was okay to drive there with their bikes on the back of the truck or on bike racks for a day out riding. People were rightly suspicious and annoyed when they saw heaps of cars near the Redwoods entrance in Rotorua.
When word got out that some mountain bikers were breaking the rules, there were reports on social media of people driving to places, parking up and riding from there instead.
The rules clearly state in level 4 you can drive to exercise only if you can't safely do so in your own neighbourhoods.
Mountain bikers in Queenstown and Taupō have also been in trouble, with riders needing to be airlifted to hospital - taking up precious emergency services time.
If it were summer, I wonder how many wave-happy surfers at Mount Maunganui would be following the rules by the book? Never mind that paraglider over Mauao last week.
And don't get me started on the 30 teens who decided it was time for a party in Rotorua on Saturday night - all hanging out together drinking, no masks and being noisy.
Some people like to push their luck. I've seen some women going for a walk with their friends, but walking with 2m between them.
Is that really within the spirit of the rules, especially when you consider how contagious the Delta variant is?
There's those who blatantly don't give a damn about any alert levels and are still "at work" with their criminal ways.
I popped into a Rotorua District Court hearing last week via audio-visual link to keep track of some of Rotorua's criminals and was disappointed to see there's still daily arrests for crimes such as burglary, unlawfully being in an enclosed yard, and drink-driving.
So as alert levels lift, people should not see this as a chance to take even more liberties. Increasingly, this fight against Covid will have little to do with authorities and more to do with us.
