Former premier of Gauteng David Makhura told the Life Esidimeni inquest that then MEC of health Qedani Mahlangu and her team justified the deaths of the mental health patients, saying it was not unusual compared to previous years.
Former Gauteng premier David Makhura addressed the Life Esidimeni inquest in the Pretoria high court on Wednesday. File photo.Former premier of Gauteng David Makhura told the Life Esidimeni inquest in the Pretoria high court that then MEC of healthand her team justified the deaths of the mental health patients, saying it was not unusual compared to previous years.
The inquest will determine if anyone can be held criminally liable for the deaths of 144 mentally ill patients. The Gauteng government in 2016 moved about 1,500 psychiatric patients from the licensed Life Esidimeni facility to 27 unlicensed NGOs. Makhura was testifying on the deliberations of the premier’s budget committee meetings and subsequent steps taken after it was first announced the former Esidimeni patients had died.“I was quite livid. We had 36 patients who died in our facilities. How does this happen? How did they die? Under what circumstances?” said Makhura.
“The officials made a presentation. What they basically did was tell me over the past five years how many mental health patients have died. I was shocked that in some years we would have 30 and other years close to 40. They said this is a trend that has been going on for the past few years.
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