Pretoria - Two lawyers hired by former ANC chief Whip Tony Yengeni to defend him on charges of corruption and fraud have withdrawn because he did not pay them.

He apparently owes them more than R800 000.

Allan Jesta, his Cape Town attorney, on Thursday declined to comment.

"We are assisting Mr Yengeni and will appear in court in January. That is all I'm prepared to say," Jesta said.

Yengeni will have to appoint new lawyers and consult with them before the case resumes in January.

Yengeni and Michael Woerfel, former European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) stand accused. Both have pleaded not guilty.

The State claims Woerfel sold a Mercedes-Benz ML320 to Yengeni for R182 563 in October 1998 on behalf of DaimlerChrysler, while the sales price was R329 895.

At the time Yengeni was chairperson of the parliamentary standing committee on defence.

Parliament has granted Yengeni extended leave to prepare for the trial.

With acknowledgements to Sonja Carstens and Beeld.