Mombasa Governor Hassan Ali Joho yet to surrender guns to police

Police revealed yesterday that Mombasa Governor Hassan Ali Joho is yet to surrender his guns.

Yesterday evening, some police sources also claimed that the governor had travelled abroad but Coast Regional Police Commander Francis Wanjohi and the governor's office denied knowledge of such a trip.

Mr Joho's spokesman Richard Chacha told The Standard that the governor had neither defied any State order nor broken the law by not handing in the arms.

"...the law says he has 14 days from the date of revocation of his certificate to comply. From our count that period has not lapsed," said Mr Chacha, who added that he could not "confirm if the governor was out of Kenya."

On Saturday, Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery warned that Joho would be arrested if he failed to surrender his weapons, a day after Joho published a letter from the State showing that Chief Firearms Licensing Officer Samuel Kimaru had asked him to surrender a rifle and two pistols to Mombasa police.

Mr Wanjohi told The Standard yesterday that he was still waiting to receive the weapons. "I have not seen any weapon from Joho. But we are still waiting for him to surrender the firearms as earlier requested because he knows the consequences should he be adamant," said Wanjohi.

Mr Kimaru declared Joho unfit to hold firearms and revoked his firearms certificate number 4773.

Kimaru added that by virtue of the revocation, Joho was now holding three guns illegally and asked him to surrender them to Mombasa Police Station.

"...you are now in illegal possession of the following firearms, Rifle .375 S/No G1015273, pistols S/No CHH 692 and VFR 841 and all ammunition...," said Kimaru's letter.

On Friday, Joho vowed that he would not surrender the guns without a proper explanation and disclosed that Kimaru had called him on telephone on Thursday demanding that he returned the guns.

Joho also said he has had a licensed firearm for 20 years.