The Deputy Director of the Ghana Commission on Small Arms and Light Weapons says firing warning shots is not allowed by law.

Gyebi Asante said the tendency of some Ghanaians to fire warning shots every night is wrong and dangerous.

He added that his the Commission often does not encourage even individuals who have obtained their firearms legally to be engaging in such acts.

Speaking on The Probe on Sunday, he disclosed to the host, Emefa Apawu, “that, [firing warning shots every night] is wrong and is also very dangerous, because you may not know where the bullet will even land. So, it is not advisable.”

Mr Asante, however, added that the only time such an act is deemed appropriate for one to fire a warning shot is when the individual feels their life is at risk and needs to scare their attackers away.

He further bemoaned the alarming rate at which the populace is acquiring firearms illicitly.

According to him, this act poses a threat to the peace and stability that is being enjoyed in the country.

He alluded to the shots that were fired during the internal elections of the NDC in 2022, to emphasise his point, and stated that Ghanaians must be concerned about that incident, especially since Ghana will be going to the polls soon.

“If we are going into elections and everybody wants to arm themselves just because we want to make sure that they are not going to cheat us and all that, then if you are not careful, the peace that we are enjoying, it is something that a time will come, and we'll realise that that peace is no more there,” he cautioned.

Mr Asante added that the aforementioned threat is what the Commission was trying to prevent from coming into existence, as it was uncertain whether Ghana’s neighbouring countries would be as hospitable and accepting of Ghanaians should a war occur that would make Ghanaians refugees.

He, therefore, advised the youth to desist from brandishing weapons during elections.

“Very soon we'll be having internal elections and then leading to the general elections next year, we are going to have primaries to elect flagbearers and also to elect parliamentary aspirants and all that. We want to besiege the youth, this is not the time to pull weapons,” Mr Asante pleaded.

He further urged Ghanaians to learn to settle any uncertainty that would arise during elections through dialogue, not by pulling out firearms and other weapons, as that was not the way to go to enable the nation to attain the development that Ghanaians desire to have.