The Minister for the Interior, Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has announced the immediate revocation of all permits for privately owned firearms.
He explained that the decision was taken in response to a disturbing trend in which some licensed firearm holders were using their weapons to take their own lives.
As part of a new re-registration regime, firearm owners will be required to undergo mental health assessments, drug testing and training on the safe handling of firearms before their permits can be renewed.
Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak disclosed this at a press conference in Accra yesterday, where he briefed journalists on the conclusion of the Gun Amnesty Programme and outlined the next steps.
He indicated that the government had observed with concern that individuals who legally acquired firearms were increasingly using them to commit suicide, hence the decision to revoke all existing permits with immediate effect.
The Gun Amnesty Programme, introduced to curb the proliferation of illicit weapons, allowed individuals to voluntarily surrender or register firearms without facing arrest, interrogation or prosecution.
The exercise led to the seizure or surrender of more than 4,000 unregistered firearms.
The minister further disclosed that over 2,000 of the unregistered firearms recovered during the programme would be destroyed at the eighth Arms Destruction Ceremony scheduled for next month at the Tesano Police Depot.
He explained that only firearms that were no longer functional would be destroyed, while those surrendered for registration would be processed accordingly.
Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak clarified that not all surrendered weapons were meant for destruction, noting that while some owners gave up their firearms because they no longer needed them, others submitted theirs for re-registration.
He stated that firearms deemed unnecessary would be marked for destruction, while those intended for re-registration would undergo a thorough vetting process to determine whether their owners were eligible to retain them.
The minister said the destruction exercise formed part of post-amnesty measures following the programme, which began in December last year and ended this year.
He also announced a ban on private security organisations possessing or using firearms, in line with Regulation 13 of L.I. 1571.
According to him, some operators had been acquiring firearms under personal protection permits but later using them for commercial security activities, contrary to the law.
He cautioned that such practices constituted a breach of the law and assured that the government would strictly enforce the regulations.
Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak added that the government would continue to engage traditional authorities on the use of firearms during customary ceremonies and urged the public to support security agencies in addressing the proliferation of illicit weapons.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
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