The South African National Prosecuting Authority today begins its inquest into the 144 mentally ill patients who died five years ago, after being transferred from Life Esidimeni health-care facilities to NGOs. The transfer was due to the Gauteng government ending its contract with the Life Esidimeni Group, which provided highly specialised chronic care to about two-thousand mental-health patients. Some of the NGO's that had accepted the patients were not licensed properly, and lacked the facilities to take care of patients. In the following report, Jane Rabothata takes us back to how it all started and what to expect from the legal process.

<p>The South African National Prosecuting Authority today begins its inquest into the 144 mentally ill patients who died five years ago, after being transferred from Life Esidimeni health-care facilities to NGOs. The transfer was due to the Gauteng government ending its contract with the Life Esidimeni Group, which provided highly specialised chronic care to about two-thousand mental-health patients. Some of the NGO's that had accepted the patients were not licensed properly, and lacked the facilities to take care of patients. In the following report, Jane Rabothata takes us back to how it all started and what to expect from the legal process.</p>

Podcast featuring interviews, reports, analysis and statements.

Advertisement