Zelda la Grange‚ the former aide of the late president Nelson Mandela‚ on Monday expressed devastation at the news of Vusi Zuma's death‚ describing him as a "beautiful child".
Vusi was a son of former president Jacob Zuma.
"Oh my word. This is terrible. Vusi was a beautiful child. We saw him grow up‚" Zelda la Grange tweeted‚ adding that he had crossed her mind just a few days earlier.
According to La Grange‚ Vusi Zuma had attended the Sacred Heart College in Johannesburg.
It was announced late on Sunday night that he had died in a private Johannesburg hospital after a short illness.
Little is known about the young Zuma‚ who is the youngest of five children born to the former president and his third wife Kate Mantsho‚ who committed suicide in December 2000.
He is believed to have been 25 years old.