By Moses Lokeris
A mother in Nabilatuk District has surrendered an illegal sub-machine gun (SMG) and six rounds of ammunition allegedly belonging to her son, who is wanted by security forces.
Santina Achia, a resident of Ariamawoi Village in Nabilatuk Town Council, handed over the firearm to police in the Mt. Moroto region on Monday.
Achia said she discovered the weapon at a place where her son, Michael Teko, had hidden it after going into hiding upon learning that security forces were looking for him.
She said she decided to surrender the firearm to prevent it from being misused and to support security efforts to recover illegal weapons in the region.
“I found the gun where my son had hidden it after he went into hiding because he had learnt that security forces were looking for him,” Achia said.
She said surrendering the firearm was necessary to ensure that it did not remain in the community and potentially contribute to insecurity.
“I decided to hand it over to the police because I did not want to keep an illegal gun in my home. I believe surrendering it is the right thing to do,” she said.
Mt. Moroto Regional Police spokesperson Mike Longole commended Achia for surrendering the firearm, describing the move as courageous and patriotic.
“We commend the mother for her courage and patriotism in surrendering the firearm to security,” Longole said.
However, Longole said Teko remains wanted and that the security operation to apprehend him is still ongoing.
“The owner of the gun, Michael Teko, is still wanted by security forces, and the operation to apprehend him continues,” Longole said.
Longole said the recovery of illegal firearms is critical to reducing insecurity and cattle-related violence in the Karamoja sub-region.
“The recovery of illegal firearms is very important in our efforts to reduce insecurity and cattle-related violence in Karamoja,” he explained.
He urged parents, cultural leaders and other community leaders to encourage individuals in possession of illegal firearms to surrender them voluntarily.
“We call upon parents and community leaders to encourage people who are still in possession of illegal firearms to voluntarily surrender them to security,” Longole said.
