The Minister for Interior, Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, says Ghana’s gun registration process, which remains fully manual, poses significant challenges for both applicants and law enforcement.
Taking his turn to answer questions during the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament’s public hearing on Tuesday, the Minister explained that acquiring a firearm license involved several cumbersome steps, including writing directly to the Interior Minister, background checks by the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) or the Police CID, fingerprinting, and fee payments.
He added that while the registration process was to control the number of guns in the country, the manual system also complicated renewals since firearm licenses were issued per calendar year.
“Honourable Chair, one of the challenges that we have is that everything is manual. For example, if you want a firearm, you must write to the Minister for the Interior, who then forwards it to the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) or the Police CID, do a background check and advise the Minister.
After going to the Police CID, they will take your fingerprint, you pay the necessary fees, and then they grant you the license.
“You may take your license in November, and by December, it has expired. The law is such that the one-year mandate is within a particular year, that is, from January 1 to December 30. But because all these are manual, it becomes a daunting task,” he stated.
The Minister told the Committee that, “Discussions are ongoing to transition the firearm licensing process to a digital platform to streamline operations and reduce loopholes.”
In a related development, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Christian Tetteh Yohuno, explained to the Committee that while licenses were valid for one year, many gun owners failed to renew them on time, leaving the Police unaware until incidents occurred.
The IGP’s response was necessitated after Madam Abena Osei-Asare, PAC’s Chairperson, inquired about the registration process during the hearing, prompting the Minister’s remarks.
PAC on Monday, September 29, reconvened to continue its public hearings to review the Auditor-General’s report for the year ending December 31, 2024.
The Committee will, from Monday to Wednesday, October 1, scrutinize various government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) for alleged financial irregularities.
Among the Ministries appearing before the Committee are the Ghana Statistical Service, the Ministry of Health, the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry for the Interior, the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General’s Department, and the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs.
The others are the Ministry of Sports and Recreation, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Creative Art, the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness, and Industry, the Ministry of Environment, Science, and Technology, and the Ministry of Transport.
The PAC’s scrutiny of the Auditor-General’s report highlights the Committee’s commitment to ensuring accountability and transparency in government financial dealings.
Source: GNA
Source: ghanabusinessnews.com
