The Firearms Licensing Board has requisitioned 340 firearms & 5,371 assorted ammunition and cancelled 36 licenses issued irregularly in an ongoing vetting exercise.
Interior CS Fred Matiang'i noted that he was contented with the vetting of civilian gun owners at DCI Academy & called for more civic involvement in the exercise according to a Twitter post by the National Government.
In January, the Firearm Licensing Board Chairman, Charles Mukindia, announced a mandatory re-evaluation exercise of all licensed gun holders.
“The vetting exercise of all firearm certificate holders is mandatory for all persons in possession of such firearm licenses and permits,”
In his directive, all firearm holders within Nairobi County were to report to the licensing board offices for evaluation on February 4, 2019.
Matiang'i ordered for the vetting to take place in three months.
Dozens of civilian gun owners trooped to the offices to verify the status of the firearms as the government embarks on fresh registration, but none was willing to give an interview, and it remained unclear if they surrendered their firearms as directed earlier by the CS.
According to Matiangi, the move was aimed at mopping up a long history of irregularities in the certification of firearms ownership and use by private citizens.
He noted that some lapses in the “licensing of firearms dealers, civilian holders, and shooting range owners have led to the illegal possession, transfer, misuse, and trafficking of such weapons thereby posing major threats to national and regional security.”
Recently, an undercover exercise was carried out following numerous complaints sent out to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) by firearm owners accusing a senior doctor at Mathare Hospital of demanding bribes during the ongoing firearm owners vetting exercise.
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