Papers in an application for a postponement of the corruption trial of Jacob Zuma and the French arms dealer Thint have been lodged in the Durban High Court.
Prosecuting advocate Anton Steynberg confirmed on Thursday that an application for postponement had been lodged with the court on Wednesday.
Arguments for the application will be heard on July 31.
Last month, the National Prosecuting Authority sent a letter to the defence teams as well as the KwaZulu-Natal judge president Vuka Tshabalala seeking a postponement of the trial until February next year.
The defence teams of Thint and the former deputy president could not be reached for comment on Thursday morning.
Late last month, they indicated that they would oppose any postponement of the trial.
Questions have arisen over who would preside over the case as Tshabalala has declined to disclose who would be the judge.
On Thursday morning, he said: ”I don’t think it is relevant to the press to know [before the trial date]. Like any trial, the accused will find out on the day.”
Speculation in the KwaZulu-Natal media has been rife that Judge Herbert Msimang will preside over the case when it opens in the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
Zuma, who was acquitted of rape earlier this year, has been charged after a high court finding that he had a ”generally corrupt” relationship with his former financial adviser, Schabir Shaik.
Thint is the South African subsidiary of French arms dealer Thales.
Thint stands accused of offering Zuma a R500 000-a-year bribe in exchange for his silence during a probe into South Africa’s multibillion-rand arms acquisition programme.
In an interview published in the Daily Dispatch this week, Zuma said delays in the corruption case against him ”gives rise to a lot of suspicions”.
He said was informed while on an overseas trip earlier this month that the prosecution might seek a further postponement of the case.
”Justice delayed is justice denied. Why should that one not apply to me?”
Zuma said he had wanted the matter to be ”dealt with as quickly as possible”, saying he had been initially promised it would be dealt with speedily.
”I wanted this case to be over last year already. I have been ready all the time to defend myself, I would have defended myself even earlier,” he said.
”If you make criminal charges against somebody you must have criminal charges, and you must have made up your mind. You can’t make a big rush to charge and then the next thing you are not ready to charge.” – Sapa