"This country is too armed with guns, too many guns floating around and too many murders as a result of guns. We must take firm action on the guns."

When I heard these words come out of our president's mouth, I felt more than just a hint of worry.

And not because I am a firearm fanatic, if that is what you're thinking. Truth be told, I don't even own a gun.

No, these two sentences from Jacob Zuma unsettled me simply because they are a clear illustration of the man's thinking on firearms. The word 'guns' is mentioned four times, yet no reference to the people on the other side of these guns is made. Msholozi places the hardware, and not the individual, at the heart of the problem.

Surely the blame should be dropped squarely at the feet of those pulling the trigger?

If arson became a highly-perpetrated crime in our land, would banning matches be the solution?

Even if we were to disregard this argument, the fact remains that the only people a tightening of gun control would really knock, are the very people who feel they need protection ? the country's law-abiding citizens.

The focus of this dilemma should instead be the plethora of illegal guns floating around South Africa. Or, more accurately, the so-called 'owners' of these guns. Until these criminals are stripped of their power, the only difference the constant harassment of legal firearm owners will make to crime statistics, is an undesirable one.

And the administration-heavy Firearms Control Act, forcing citizens to jump through hoop after ludicrous hoop, is nothing more than a thinly-veiled attempt to get citizens to give up their firearms. This too is hurting the fight against crime.

Many countries have banned firearms. And almost every case has clearly shown that violent crimes do not taper off in the months and years to follow. Zuma sometimes talks of divided countries learning from South Africa's journey from Apartheid to the present. Perhaps this is one instance in which our leader could learn from the mistakes of the rest of the world.

Only if and when the police become competent enough to protect its citizens will legal gun owners in South Africa even think about giving up their right to bear arms.

And if Zuma intends on pursuing this battle against 'guns', best he change his theme song.

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