By Ragan M. Conteh
The Commissioner of the Sierra Leone Commission on Arms and Ammunition, Rtd. Colonel Binneh K. Conteh on Tuesday 21st May 2024 told journalists that their commission is charged with the mandate and responsibilities to train ‘legal weapon-holders’ to kill their targets’.
He made the disclosure during the weekly press conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Colonel Conteh made the statement when he was speaking on the proliferation of weapons in Sierra Leone.
He assured attendees that there is need to eradicate illegal possession of weapons in the country.
He emphasized that they only train weapon-holders who have legally applied for the guns and he said they have passed the thresholds of possessing the arm.
He said that they had equipped the ‘gun-license holders’ with the combatant skills to use weapons cautiously and safely without causing damage to innocent people.
“If you want a weapon, you should apply for it, giving us justifiable reasons and there are certain procedures to go through too. One must present medical report of one’s mental state,” he explained.
Commissioner Konteh talked on the challenges of curbing the illegal possession of weapons, adding that since 2015, they have had a data of about a thousand weapon-holders in their system and that they are both Sierra Leoneans and foreigners.
He encouraged Sierra Leoneans to be on a look-out as there will be prosecution of people with unlicensed weapons.
Mr. Conteh said it is the responsibility of every citizen to restore peace, and stability in the country, stressing that the proliferation of weapons caused the civil and senseless war in Sierra Leone and in Liberia.
He said the Commission’s mandate is to control the possession of weapons in the country.
Due to the nature of their work, they supervised the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) and the military to fully control weapons.