Barely a week after disbanding the Firearm Licensing Board, Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr, Fred Matiang'i has constituted a new team to take over.
Matiang’i, on Thursday, appointed and gazetted Charles Mwongera Mikindia as the new chair of the Board, and also brought in six others to serve below him, reports the Nation.
The CS on Friday last week disbanded the board citing incompetence, misbehaviour and corruption, claiming that the same has led to the increase of guns being held in the wrong hands.
Matiang’I who was speaking during the National Policing Conference in Nairobi said that the move is aimed at securing the nation and saving Kenyans from possible harm emanating from illegal guns.
“We have to be honest to the public. The process of licensing firearms has been riddled with corruption, incompetence and misbehaviour that has led to dancing illegal guns,” he was quoted by the Standard.
After the reconstruction of the board, he said, the government will embark on issuing fresh licenses to gun holders, warning of dire consequences to individuals who will be found handling illegal firearms.
“We shall issue new certificates to the genuine holders and those without the documents will be considered to be illegally holding the firearms and you know what that means,” he said.