This follows an earlier ruling by the Supreme court in Uganda that granted Klayman full ownership of the contested gold. So, the Al Nahyan directive brings to end a longstanding standoff between Klayman and Uganda Revenue Authority (URA).
The gold has been at the centre of controversy since 2021 when governments of Uganda and DR Congo petitioned the Abu Dhabi authorities to have the gold returned to what both claimed to be the point of origin.
This forced the Abu Dhabi authorities to confiscate the consignment until the matter is resolved and in this period, Klayman had to stay in UAE to follow the matter closely and convince the commission.
URA, on behalf of the Ugandan government, argued that the gold was illegally exported to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) without paying taxes but a UAE commission of inquiry chaired by Al Nahyan noted that Klayman’s RAK Group Holdings can sell the gold and in return pay taxes to URA.
The Al Nahyan commission ruled that the point of origin is of Uganda and not DR Congo, thereby granting Klayman leeway to sell to the highest bidder. However, the commission also ordered Klayman to pay case completion fee, among other costs.
Reached out for a comment, a URA official that participated in the petition but preferred anonymity, said they will abide with the court ruling.
“We have tried our level best to have the petition succeed but now that the Supreme court has ruled in favour of the American [Klayman], we can only recover taxes,” he said.
The commission directed that Klayman be given all his gold to sell off and pay taxes of the Ugandan government by depositing the amount to the account of the Ugandan Embassy. Meanwhile, Klyaman is also required to settle the DR Congo claim by depositing it on the account of the DR Congo Embassy.
Efforts to reach out to Klayman were futile as his known number did not go through.
