Qedani Mahlangu ‘relied’ on senior officials for information on Life Esidimeni project

Former Gauteng health MEC Qedani Mahlangu says she relied on senior department of health officials for information on the Life Esidimeni project.

“I relied on the HOD and his team, Dr Manamela and Mr Mosenogi to be exact,” she said.

Makgabo Manamela is the former Gauteng director of mental health, while Levy Mosenogi was the Life Esidimeni project lead.

Mahlangu appeared before the Life Esidimeni inquest in the High Court in Pretoria on Wednesday.

ALSO READ: Life Esidimeni: R400m paid to victims, with more compensation expected

The hearing will determine whether anyone can be held criminally liable after 144 mental health patients died after they were transferred from Life Esidimeni to other NGOs in 2016.

On the second day of the inquest, Mahlangu took the court through the processes that were followed that led to the termination of the Life Esidimeni contract.

Mahlangu: ‘I did my best’

“I have served the provincial government for 12 years and throughout my serving in every portfolio I think I did my best and I know how the provincial government system works,” Mahlangu started her testimony.

“I met with the team, when they requested the meeting and I was not available, the HOD was always there available to deal with the issues.

“And if you look at my roles and responsibilities, I think it should take a super human being to do all of these things and be able to each and every one of these things I was supposed to have meant to have done, particularly relating to this project. I needed not to sleep if I really had to do some of the things that is suggested I would have done, I should have done.”

ALSO READ: ‘I knew I was going into a lion’s den,’ says Qedani Mahlangu on Gauteng health deployment

She said when the contract was terminated, a request was made to extend the cancellation by three months and at the time, there was never an indication by anyone that the further three-month extension would not be sufficient.

“It was also noted that the longer the department took to complete the move, it was not good for the mental health caregivers because the quality of care was deteriorating at the institution,” she said.

Fraudulent licences

Mahlangu said she was not aware of any fraudulent licences being issued to the NGOs.

“If I knew about it, I would have taken action. I played no role in issuing the licences either.”

She said Manamela was the one who dealt with the issuing of licences for the NGOs meant to accommodate the 144 patients moved from Life Esidimeni.

ALSO READ: Life Esidimeni: DA asks why govt is still paying Qedani Mahlangu’s legal fees?

Manamela has previously admitted she had signed the licences, but said she was not responsible for choosing the NGOs and ensuring they met the standard set by the department.

Mahlangu said she had no reason to believe anything would go wrong in moving the patients as she was working with a team with people who had successfully moved patients between institutions before.