Key Esidimeni officer can't avoid hearing

The suspended head of the Gauteng department of health, Barney Selebano, has failed in his bid to avoid appearing before the Life Esidimeni arbitration hearing.

Selebano, one of the three senior officials in charge of the Life Esidimeni process that led to the deaths of 143 patients, challenged his subpoena by appealing on technical grounds.

On Monday, acting Judge Daniel Berger dismissed Selebano's application and ordered him to pay costs of the state's two advocates.

The judge said: "Selebano has failed to establish a basis on which his subpoena can be challenged." He later dismissed an application to appeal, saying it did not have "reasonable prospects of success".

This means Selebano will appear in the hearing at 9am on Tuesday to explain his role.

His court papers claim he played a "limited role" in the decision to close down Esidimeni homes and move mentally ill patients to questionable NGOs.

Selebano had challenged his subpoena, which was issued under the Arbitration Act, by arguing that the Esidimeni hearings were not a real arbitration, as defined in the law.