KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 89,771 Malaysians have been issued licences to bear arms ranging from rifles to stun guns.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the licences were issued as of Dec 31 last year.
"Of the number, 12,917 licences were for pistols, 1,789 for revolvers and 2,243 for rifles," he said when submitting a written reply to Nga Kor Ming (DAP-Taiping) in the Dewan Rakyat on Monday.
He said licences for shotguns were the most to be issued with 63,145 given out while 7,731 licences were for pump-action shotguns.
"A total of 1,946 licences were issued for other firearms, such as flag-off pistols, blank guns, spear guns, nail guns and stun guns," he added.
On preventing firearms smuggling, Dr Ahmad Zahid said preventive measures are available under the Security Offenses (Special Measures) Act, Dangerous Drugs Act (Preventive Measures) and Penal Code to deal with the issue.
He added that police operations under 'Ops Cantas' and close monitoring of border and entry points in the country also helped curb gun-smuggling activities.
He said enforcement agencies, particularly those in the coastal areas, worked closely with their neighbouring counterparts to check smuggling activities.
The cooperation, he added, extended to exchange of intelligence.
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