Probe exonerates Rushwaya

A PROBE into the alleged secret nostro accounts allegedly held by suspended Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) boss Henrietta Rushwaya has absolved the former football administrator of any wrongdoing.

Rushwaya was suspended from ZMF last Monday following her arrest at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport while trying to smuggle more than 6kg of gold worth US$330 000 to Dubai.

The federation immediately set up a special committee to probe allegations that Rushwaya was operating nosto accounts in the name of ZMF without the knowledge of other members.

ZMF chairperson Makumba Nyenje yesterday confirmed that they investigated the accounts, and established that they were above board.

“Actually, they are not secret accounts, they are accounts which they opened on behalf of the organisation,” Nyenje said.

“We discovered that they were waiting for other signatories to bring their documents. It is above board and no money has been deposited into the accounts.”

ZMF general-secretary Philemon Mokuele last week said miners deposited their fees in the accounts and there were fears that the money could have been abused.

“In the meeting, the treasurer-general highlighted that there were CBZ nostro accounts where miners deposited fees. We then discovered that these accounts were not official, hence our decision to set up a committee headed by the treasurer-general to look into the issue as well as audit all ZMF accounts,” Mokuele said then.

Rushwaya and her accomplices, Gift Karanda, business partner Ali Mohammed, Central Intelligence Organisation operatives Stephen Tserayi and Raphios Mufandauya and two top police officers are languishing in remand prison awaiting ruling on their bail application.