Jacob Zuma’s lawyers have alleged the former South African president is being treated unfairly by prosecutors, amid a bid by the former leader to have corruption charges levelled against him dropped.

Zuma who resigned last year is accused of committing 16 counts of fraud, racketeering and money laundering, relating to a multibillion-dollar arms deal, involving military hardware supplied by French defence company Thales, to South Africa's armed forces in the late 1990s.

On Monday, the 77-year-old appeared in court for the fifth time, since the charges against him were reinstated in March 2018.

He has previously denied any wrongdoing, claiming he was the victim of a politically motivated witch-hunt, and has applied for a permanent stay of prosecution over the case.