Lekhetho Ntsukunyane
THE South African Police Service’s Central Firearms Registry (CFR) has ordered South African companies to indefinitely suspend selling firearms and ammunition to Lesotho’s private dealers because of the Kingdom’s “current political situation”.
The CFR is responsible for issuing permits to South African businesses for the importation and exportation of guns and bullets, among other responsibilities.
However, the agency’s decision has since prompted Lesotho’s leading arms dealer, AK’s Arms and Ammo, to seek government’s intervention as the business is on the verge of collapse due to lack of stock.
AK’s Arms and Ammo was established in Maseru in 2002, and imports firearms, bullets, pepper-spray and bullet-proof vests, among other accessories. The company sources most of its stock from South African firms for sale to clients throughout the country, according to the owner and chief executive officer (CEO), Khoabane Ramaisa.
According to Mr Ramaisa, AK’s Arms and Ammo imports “tens of firearms, ammunition and related equipment” from South Africa each month but has been struggling since CFR effected the embargo in October 2014. The suspension was renewed for an indefinite period two months ago, prompting Mr Ramaisa to appeal for salvation from government.
“We have hundreds of clients, among them security companies, as well as police, correctional service and army officers who buy from us as organisations or individuals.
“But business has been severely affected after our South African supplier informed us about the CFR’s directive, which came into effect in October 2014,” said Mr Ramaisa.
According to Mr Ramaisa, the CFR decision was further reiterated during the agency’s meeting on 22 June 2015.
This information is contained in a letter Pretoria-based Nicholas Yale Importers and Distributers—which supplies AK’s Arms and Ammo with stock—wrote to Mr Ramaisa on 23 June 2015. The letter, titled ‘Renewed Embargo on Lesotho’ is signed by the company’s CEO, Nadile Prior.
The correspondence reads: “We regret to inform you that due to the current political situation in Lesotho, our Central Firearms Registry (CFR) informed us on 22 June 2015 that there is, once again, an embargo on the processing of permits for firearms and ammunition being exported to Lesotho. We will advise all affected dealers as soon as CFR informs us that the embargo has been lifted, after which we can only hope that outstanding permits will be processed quickly. We apologise for any inconvenience caused, but unfortunately, it is out of our hands.”
This letter followed an almost similarly-worded communiqué the company issued on 3 October 2014.
Meanwhile, in an effort to save his business in the wake of the embargo, Mr Ramaisa wrote to Prime Minister (PM) Pakalitha Mosisili on 29 June 2015 for government intervention.
Mr Ramaisa noted in the letter: “We hereby request your good office for assistance to the above-mentioned company (AK’s Arms and Ammo), embargoed as from 3 October 2014 to the month of June 2015 as per the attached documents. Our business was embargoed because of political instability. Also, on 23 June 2015, we received yet another embargo letter, which does not state the period it will take. This means we have been out of business from October 2014 till now hence our request for assistance to resume operations. This has negatively affected our business’s cash-flow.”
Asked what kind of assistance he expected from government, Mr Ramaisa said since the embargo was due to “political instability”, he had hope the authorities could convince the South Africans otherwise. Mr Ramaisa also said he had asked government for a M120 000 bailout.
However, Mr Ramaisa’s letter was responded to by the PM’s Senior Private Secretary, Mamello Morrison on 8 July 2015, who declined the request.
Wrote Ms Morrison: “The Right Honourable The Prime Minister has perused your letter on the above-mentioned topic as well as all attachments thereto. We regret that due to what is referred to as ‘the political situation in Lesotho’, your business has suffered adverse consequences. You have not indicated, by way of guidance, why your insurance company was unable to help.
“(However) Due to budget constraints and other urgent matters of this office, we are unable to help you with such an amount of money. We trust that you will be able to explore other avenues of assistance so that indeed your business may continue.”
Mr Ramaisa said he had further written similar letters dated 30 June 2015, seeking assistance from the ministers of Finance, Trade and Labour, but did not receive any response.
Ms Morrison confirmed to the Sunday Express receiving the premier’s letter from AK’s Arms and Ammo and her subsequent response.
She said: “Indeed, we received a letter from the company and I responded after consulting with the relevant authorities in the office of the Prime Minister.
“I was asked if that letter had come to the right place, as the first thing a business entity does after experiencing such funding challenges is to contact its insurance company.”
In a related development, the Sunday Express is in possession of a copy of minutes of a meeting held on 30 September 2014 between the South African Arms and Ammunition Dealers Association (SAAADA) and the CFR.
The minutes indicate that SAAADA was notified “that it would be informed of any changes in procedures/policies, one being the suspension in trade between South Africa and the countries of Israel and Taiwan (arms boycott) and exports /imports to/from Lesotho.”