$80m Gold Drama Deepens

The report about the 1.5 tonnes of gold valued at $80 million confiscated in Turkey on January 2, 2013 and believed to have originated from Ghana is becoming murkier by the day as the government of Ghana has denied knowledge of the transaction.

Turkish official news agency, the Anatolia, reports that the gold being transported by Turkish-based freight company, Universal Logistics Systems (ULS), was heading towards Iran “carrying Ghana’s commitment to Iran in Gold,” until it was grounded by Turkish authorities for lacking the necessary covering documents.

Investigations conducted by DAILY GUIDE indicate that the gold was actually transacted using forged documents by a faceless syndicate close to the highest echelon of government.

It is believed that with the help of some security chiefs, the syndicate used its privileged association with the seat of government to evade all requisite clearance in Ghana.

The unofficial nature of the transaction may have been done on the blind side of authorities that had been scratching their heads about details of the transaction since the news broke in the Turkish media and several other international newswires early January.

It is believed that the mafia-like syndicate has already received $13million from its Iranian buyers who are probably yet to test the authenticity of the gold consignment en-route to them.

Indeed, the sensitive nature of the transaction has forced President Mahama to mount a full-scale investigation, according to John Abdulai Jinapor, spokesperson to the President.

Mr. Jinapor has categorically denied government’s connection to the controversial gold. “I can confirm that the government of Ghana has not, has not shipped any gold neither has it transferred any gold,” he told several radio stations on Monday.

Attempts by DAILY GUIDE to get an update on the status of the multi-million dollar gold cargo from the transporters yielded evasive answers as the paper was stonewalled.

When DAILY GUIDE called the offices of ULS in Turkey on their main telephone line +902121960202, the secretaries told the paper that the general manager was on vacation.

Further attempts with the Turkish Embassy in Ghana yielded no progress, as the ambassador to Ghana, Aydin Nurhan, was as stunned as the Ghanaian authorities.

He told DAILY GUIDE yesterday in a telephone conversation that he had also been looking for details of the so-called transaction to no avail.

The origin of the ULS cargo plane is also shrouded in mystery. Initial reports claimed that the plane originated from Algeria and was going to Dubai.

However, later reports indicated that the flight actually originated from Ghana to Iran. There are no direct flights from Ghana to Iran.

Officials at the Kotoka International Airport said they had no record of an Airbus A-300 cargo plane flying from Ghana to Iran on or before the 1st of January, stated local radio station, Joy FM.

The Minerals Commission and the Parliament of Ghana are also said to be in the dark about the transaction as there are no records of any private or public transaction of the quantity of gold in question, the said transaction was said to be for project payment to Iran.

DAILY GUIDE investigations indicate that it was difficult to trace the origin and the route of the deal because most of the documents covering the transaction were forged using privileged positions.

On January 2, 2013, both public and private newswires in Turkey and other international newswires reported that a Turkish cargo plane laden with bars of gold from Ghana was forced to land at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul to refuel and reshuffle crew, but was detained by Turkish authorities for sketchy cover documents of the consignment.

Reports said that Turkish authorities fined the plane $1,910 for stopping at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport on the ground of missing documents. Anatolia News Agency, Turkish official news agency, had it that ULS, the cargo owner, would pay $67 for missing documents and $1,910 for stopping at Ataturk Airport.

It is believed that US and EU sanctions on Iranian banking sector had limited bank payments of countries’ monetary commitments to Iran and they barter gold for Iranian oil and gas.

On Sunday, pro-New Patriotic Party (NPP) outfit, the Danquah Institute (DI), said there was something fishy about the whole transaction.

The Danquah Institute wants President John Mahama to explain to Ghanaians why the country’s gold was used to make payments to Iran and why the plane carrying the gold was seized in Turkey for lacking proper documentation.

The government has so far not been able to volunteer any information but it has launched an investigation into the transaction.

“The silence from government on a transaction said to involve some $80million, is deafening. We, at DI, are demanding full disclosure of this transaction from government for the benefit of the people of Ghana and in the interest off good governance,” DI stated in its Sunday press release.