Interior Minister freezes all valid gun permits nationwide

Interior Minister Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak has announced the immediate suspension of all valid gun licences nationwide following security concerns arising from recent violent incidents.

The minister said the decision was prompted by a growing threat to public safety, which authorities believe requires urgent intervention to prevent further misuse of firearms.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Tuesday, June 23, Mr Muntaka said the government would temporarily freeze all firearm permits currently held by civilians across the country.

“Everybody in Ghana who currently holds a legitimate license to hold a gun, today (Tuesday, June 23), I am suspending all of it. All of it that everybody is holding,” he said.

He explained that intelligence gathered by the security agencies had revealed an emerging pattern that could endanger lives if swift action was not taken.

“Because we have realised a new phenomenon which is threatening public safety,” he noted.

The announcement comes two days after former Member of Parliament for Dome-Kwabenya, Sarah Adwoa Safo, sustained a gunshot injury to her left ear during a violent succession dispute at her late father’s residence in Kwabenya, Accra.

The incident occurred on Sunday, June 21, during a ceremony to install her younger brother, Israel Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena, as the successor to the late Apostle Emeritus Kwadwo Safo Kantanka and leader of the Kristo Asafo Mission of Ghana.

According to reports, Ms Adwoa Safo had gone to the Akofena Palace to serve court injunction papers seeking to halt the installation ceremony. She was allegedly denied entry and subsequently rammed her Toyota Prado into the residence gate.

The situation quickly escalated, with armed private security personnel opening fire, shattering the vehicle’s windows and injuring the former lawmaker.

The Ghana Police Service has since arrested nine suspects in connection with the incident. Six private security guards were initially detained, while Israel Kwadwo Safo Akofena and two alleged accomplices were arrested on Monday, June 22.

A police search at Akofena’s residence also led to the retrieval of two Glock pistols and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

The minister believes a crackdown on firearms will bring sanity to the system and protect the public.