By DAVID OKWEMBAH
Nearly four tonnes of unrefined gold from Congo is stuck in Nairobi, setting off an international controversy over its ownership and whether it was smuggled into the country.
The gold was en route to Zurich, Switzerland, from Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
But the Swiss company, which was to receive the gold, Firstar, pulled out at the last minute saying it had learnt that the cargo belonged to Zimbabwean Vice-President, Mrs Joice Mujuru, investigations by the Nation reveal.
A South African businessman, Dancor Spies, claimed to be the key mover in the transaction denies that it had anything to do with the Zimbabwean. He, however, would not disclose who owns it.
Mr Spies ultimately stopped communicating with the Nation and threatened to go to court if the story is published.
The gold, whose worth is estimated at between Sh4 billion and Sh5 billion, is reported to have been flown in on November 28, last year, from Lubumbashi, an area of the Congo where Zimbabwean officials have influence.
Zimbabwe is among nations which have mineral interests in the Congo and at one time sent an army to prop up the Kinshasa government against rebels.
According to the certificate of origin, a copy of which is certified by Nairobi lawyer Cecil Miller, the quantity of gold in question is 3,700 kilogrammes.
Mrs Mujuru’s daughter, Mrs Nyasha del Campo, a commodities trader based in Spain, told the Nation that she was an intermediary in the transaction.
Kenyan law firm
She claimed that the gold belonged to a friend of Mr Spies in Nairobi. In subsequent e-mails, however, she changed her stance: “I am not the owner of the gold. The owner was represented by a local Kenyan law firm and I was not privy as to know who owns this gold. I was just an intermediary,” she wrote.
Mr Spies said the cargo belonged to a mine in the Katanga Province of the Congo. He claimed to have been unable to get in touch with the owner for three weeks.
“Regrettably, I am not in a position to give you any further detailed and confidential information as I am not the owner of the gold. I was unable to make contact with the owner since 3 weeks ago. I am however still trying,” the South African said.
He, however, was categorical that the gold did not belong to Mrs Mujuru’s daughter, her husband or any of her family members.
The gold saga came to light three weeks ago when the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) linked it to Mrs Mujuru and her husband Solomon, the former head of the army under President Mugabe.
Mrs Mujuru and her family are among small elite who have prospered in Zimbabwe as the rest of the country plunges into an ever-deeper economic mire.
According to Swiss gold refinery firm Firstar, the Zimbabwean vice-president was using her daughter, Nyasha, who is married to a Spaniard, Pedro del Campo, to sell the gold.
However, the daughter was unable to pay Sh16 million freight for the 3,700kg of gold to Zurich and is reported to have sought the support of her mother to have the gold airlifted from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).