Life Esidimeni inquest postponed as Qedani Mahlangu's lawyers not paid

The inquest into the Life Esidimeni deaths has been postponed to next month as the state attorney has failed to pay the lawyers of former Gauteng health MEC Qedani Mahlangu.

Mahlangu was expected to appear in the Pretoria high court on Tuesday but her legal representative Laurence Hodes said he has not yet been paid.

This means they can only resume consultations with Mahlangu once the state attorney has paid what is due — stated in the court to be about R250,000.

Hodes said he expects payment next week and requested the court to postpone the matter to next month.

“The assurance I can give is that the matter will proceed on May 2,” he said.

Mahlangu headed the health department when 141 mental health patients died after being moved from Life Esidimeni to NGOs.

The inquest is to determine if anyone should be held criminally liable for the deaths after the contract with Life Esidimeni was cancelled.

Two reports found the cancellation and deaths at the NGO facilities were “irrational”.

In 2018, then deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke said the deaths and “torture” at the NGO facilities stemmed from “irrational and arrogant use of public power”.

This was also stated in 2017 by health ombud Prof Malegapuru Makgoba, who found the cancellation of the contract between the department of health and Life Esidimeni was “fundamentally flawed, irrational, unwise and inhumane”.

Postmortem reports found some of the deceased mental patients had plastic in their stomachs, apparently consumed out of desperation and hunger.

But Mahlangu rejected the findings and blamed her colleagues Dr Tiego Selebano and Dr Makgabo Manamela for not disclosing there was insufficient food at the NGOs.

Meanwhile, the Gauteng legislature revealed in February that R405m will be paid to the affected families.

At the time, DA Gauteng shadow MEC of health Jack Bloom said the department received 514 claims of which 405 were eligible for compensation of R1.2m each.

Bloom said it was disappointing that no-one has been charged for the murders and maltreatment of patients since the incident happened in 2016.

“The payouts are necessary but cannot compensate for the suffering and loss of lives. The inquest needs to speed up its proceedings as families will only have closure when the culprits are charged and sentenced,” Bloom said.

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