200 guns have been recovered from various districts in Karamoja voluntarily.
Mt. Moroto Regional Police Spokesman, Mike Longole says that some residents in Karamoja have heeded the messages of peace and stability in the region.
According to Longole, the police can register at least two guns voluntarily from residents weekly. Together with other forceful recoveries including tipoffs from the vigilant communities, the region has recovered 1,279 guns since July 2021.
Longole says that voluntary gun recoveries are a significant step towards reducing crime and promoting peace in the region. He says that after the launch of Usalama Kwa Wote (Peace for all) in 2021, many people have embraced peace, making them show up with illegal guns that some of them have been keeping for decades.
In Napayan village, James Lomongin, 40, said that he was tired of hiding from home because of the guns in his compound. “I have been raiding and committing other offences for some time. But there’s no peace or happiness in all these things. Every time I commit an offence, I feel the guilt and that’s why I decided to surrender these weapons to the authorities so that I may have peace of mind,” he said while handing over the guns to the police, GISO, and LC1 chairman of his village.
Lomongin had two guns, including an SMG gun with eleven live ammunition. His two guns add to the 1,279 guns recovered by the joint security forces since July 2021 when the second phase of disarmament operation was launched in Karamoja.
The operation has also seen 9,501 live ammunition recovered and a total of 1,840 warriors produced to court. The operation has also seen at least 44,298 cattle recovered during the period in review.