Johannesburg - The trial of Duduzane Zuma, the son of former president Jacob Zuma, was on Wednesday postponed due to a problem with the court recording machines.
State prosecutor Yusuf Baba said the evidence had to be cut short due to a problem with the recorder: "The magistrate orders proceedings be postponed until 08:30 on Thursday."
Zuma was initially charged with two counts of culpable homicide after a 2014 car accident that resulted in the deaths of Phumzile Dube and Nanki Jeanette Mashaba.
Dube died after Zuma’s Porsche crashed into a minibus taxi on the M1 in Johannesburg. Mashaba died in hospital. However, the court withdrew one of the charges after it was found that Mashaba had another pre-existing medical condition.
In March, the court rejected Zuma's application to have the culpable homicide case against him discharged
Zuma told the Randburg Magistrate's court on Wednesday during cross-examination that the crash had been a traumatic experience for everyone and that he was fortunate he survived it.
“It does have an affect on me.”
Video: Simphiwe Mbokazi African News Agency
He added that he doesn’t want to play a blame game and takes responsibility. “I do sympathise with anyone who has been affected.”
He said at the time of the accident it was raining heavily and he had been driving in the fast lane and “before I knew it the car, my vehicle had lost control” and “as the vehicle hit the pool of water I lost control of the steering mechanism, it just went out of control.”
Before Baba was finished with his cross-examination he noticed that the recorder was not recording. The court took a short break to attend to the machines, but after an hour the matter was adjourned until Thursday.
Zuma was supported in the court's public gallery by members of the Black First Land First (BLF) political party. Dube's mother and brother were also present.
Zuma has pleaded not guilty to culpable homicide as well as reckless and negligent driving.