Time to take firearm license applications online
16 May 2021
The Central Firearms Registry (CFR) needs to move into the twenty first century with urgency and take the entire firearms application process online.
During an oversight visit by Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police to the CFR this weekend it became clear that the CFR is dysfunctional and cannot fulfil its mandate as set out in the Firearms Control Act of 2000.
Files piled up in corridors on every floor due to a lack of space, the poor use of IT systems, staff shortages and a building which has been declared unsafe are all contributing factors to the chaos we saw at the CFR. Staff morale is at an all time low under these conditions resulting in rock bottom levels of productivity.
During the oversight I challenged the SAPS to take the entire process online from application to approval. This would remove unnecessary delays and ensure a fully digitised system which applicants could access to monitor the progress of their application.