Improve gun control regime to check crime; CSO expresses alarm

A civil society organisation on security, Centre for Defence and Security (CDS), has urged the government to speed up the review process of the Arms and Ammunition Act, 1972 and introduce stricter laws on gun importation, gun distribution and civilian gun ownership.

This, in the opinion of the organisation, will help improve easy access to guns and the attendant increase in violent crime.

The Executive Director of the Centre for Defence and Security, Mr Yaro Kasambata, opined in an interview with the Daily Graphic that the recent killings of the five police officers and the violent killings of citizens were as a result of the weak gun laws and non-existent regulatory framework for effective gun control in the country.

The (CDS) has, therefore, called on the government to introduce strict gun laws and a strong regulatory institution to curb the proliferation of small arms and crime in the country.

“Police guns hot cake”

Mr Kasambata blamed the recent police killings and violent crimes on illicit firearms, saying it was nearly impossible to trace their source and ownership when used to commit crimes.

He said it was, therefore, not surprising that in the recent and previous killings of police officers, their AK47 service rifles were stolen.

“AK47 rifle is a hot cake on the sub-regional black market with prices ranging between GH¢7,000 and GH¢8,000. With this demand, criminals may go great lengths to take possession of these rifles, thereby putting the lives of our hardworking police officers in perilous way,” he explained.

Regulator needed

The wide circulation of guns in the country, he said, did not only threaten the peace and stability of the country, but fuelled criminal activities.

He explained that the laws on guns in the country although were multiple, overlapped at some points, making it difficult for implementation.

Additionally, he said, the absence of an authority mandated to regulate and set guidelines for importation and licensing of guns and ammunition were the major cause of many crimes in the country.

Currently, he said the Ministry for the Interior was responsible for the issuance of licence to persons with guns and there were no strict guidelines to issue the licence and ensure that the person owning or possessing the gun had the needed competences and training to possess it.

Without the necessary training for persons who possess guns, Mr Kasambata said, they could be dangerous to themselves and society.
Also, he said the local manufacturers of guns were also producing guns for the local market on the blind side of the law.

Crime rate is high

He said it was regrettable that currently, there were no reliable data on the actual number of firearms in circulation in the country.

“A baseline study in 2014 by the Ghana National Commission on Small Arms (GNCSA) stated that 2.3 million arms were in the hands of adult civilians. Out of this number, only 53 per cent were registered, with 47 per cent unaccounted for, while assessment of the registered guns in Ghana revealed a disturbing situation where the licences of majority of registered guns were not renewed annually as mandated by law,” he said.

Introduce stricter laws

 view of these developments, Mr Kasambata urged the government to introduce appropriate measures to contain the situation.

“This will make our gun laws compliant with contemporary laws and international treaties that Ghana is party to such as the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)”, he said.
Additionally, he said the government should prioritise the establishment of an oversight body such as “Small Arms Regulatory Authority” with the mandate to enforce regulations on gun importation, gun permits and licensing regimes.

The regulator, he said, should be made responsible for approving the suitability of persons who wished to possess firearms and their suitability should include a clean criminal background, psychological and psychiatric competences.