Esidimeni families have to wait for payment

It is not yet clear when the other 200 Life Esidimeni families will be compensated.

The families had hoped that they would be compensated before the end of the year.

This after they claimed they had a meeting with officials from the office of Gauteng premier David Makhura on September 15. However, government spokesperson Thabo Masebe said there was still a process to be followed.

"There is still a verification process and then after [that] we will establish whether the families have the legal right to represent the people they claim they are families so as to avoid different claims for one person. It is only after all these processes have been followed that the government will look into compensating them."

The 200 families were left out when more than R159m was paid out to 134 claimants who were part of the alternative dispute resolution process.

Six months ago, retired judge Dikgang Moseneke ordered Gauteng to pay affected families R20000 each for funeral expenses, R180000 for shock and psychological trauma and R1m for constitutional damages.

A family member, Sarah Ramaboea 56, said they were not happy with the ruling from the onset.

"It only represented a few people, leaving the rest out. We were all affected by the Life Esidimeni saga, why is it now that only a few have benefitted from government?"