By Hassan Isilow
JOHANNESBURG (AA) – A court in South Africa on Monday postponed the corruption trial hearing against former President Jacob Zuma and French arms company Thales until May 26.
Zuma, 79, faces 16 charges which include corruption, money laundering, fraud, and racketeering in connection with a $2.5 billion arms deal dating back to the late 1990s.
The former president appeared briefly at the Pietermaritzburg High Court in KwaZulu-Natal along with the French company representatives as his supporters gathered outside.
His legal team said it intended to apply for the recusal of the lead state prosecutor in the matter whom they accuse of bias against Zuma.
The charges against Zuma were initially dropped in 2009 by former National Prosecuting Authority head Mokotedi Mpshe, weeks before Zuma was elected president. However, they were reinstated in 2018.
Zuma was forced to resign as president by his ruling African National Congress party in 2018 following various allegations of corruption linked to the wealthy Indian Gupta family, among others.