Prime Minister James Marape has come out boldly this afternoon on the floor of Parliament advising that those illegally in possession of firearms the penalty for this offence will be life imprisonment. Addressing the parliament, Prime Minister Marape took the opportunity to reply to concerns raised on the Gun control in many parts of the country, which has contributed to widespread law and order issues. He stated that this may not be an easy task as in some parts of the country, many may still have access to firearms, and he added that those who have been apprehended by police will face this penalty. “I’m using this question to reply to all those caught, that they will go behind bars.” He mentioned that the Government will not be reverting to the old way of buying back firearms from criminals and it is not something that the government is considering looking into. With this he issued a stern warning to those that may be in possession of unlicensed and illegal firearms that police have been tasked to investigate this and are actively investigating everyone [Persons of Interest] that may be involved in this activity. Marape added that a suspect from the Western Highlands province, following months of investigation was recently apprehended by police and is behind bars today, with his associates soon to follow pending investigations. “16 of them have been arrested so those that have illegal firearms, well it’s life Imprisonment for you should you get caught.”