Gun licence renewals plunge as illegal firearms fears grow

She said what led to the collapse in relicensing was the combination of factors that include: Legal uncertainty following a 2022 Constitutional Court ruling that was widely misread to mean gun owners no longer needed a valid licence; Misinformation and disinformation from the gun lobby group; and Failure by Saps to enforce the renewal and termination provisions of the Firearms Control Act.” The Supreme Court of Appeal said in 2020 that unlicensed firearms pose a real risk of being stolen or lost and ending up in criminal hands, and that without an effective relicensing system, firearms endanger lives.“Conflating a vetted owner with an expired licence with an armed criminal does nothing to make South Africans safer,” said Taylor.