Facility offers complete firearm competence

Firearms dealer and instructor Rorisang Khotle has established a facility that prepares people mentally before shooting, in order for them to understand why they have the firearms and when to use them.

Sovereign Guns & Ammo Pty Ltd gun shop is a licenced firearm dealership situated at DLM complex in Khubetsoana, Maseru. It sells firearms and ammunition, and provides firearm training.

By offering theoretical concepts based on comprehensive fire arms competence, Khotle aims to bridge the gap of most facilities which only cover shooting practice.

This is what sets Khotle apart from others. Students are given tests, exams and then qualify for a competence certificate.

The programme offers safe handling of firearms, safe use of firearms security rules, laws surrounding acquisition and use of fire arms, firearm dissembling and cleaning.

Khotle told theReporter in an interview this week that he studied Bachelor of Laws at the National University of Lesotho.

He then started his first business of a security company, which gave birth to Sovereign Guns & Ammo- Pty Ltd. He had to put the business on hold due to lack of firearms at that time.

In the face of this challenge, Khotle applied for a firearm dealership and started his own business in 2018 at DLM complex on a space that was already a gun shop.

“At that time (2018) we had to face arms embargo whereby SADC had to restrict exportation of firearms into the country as a member state because of the political instability that was taking place. As a result, the business had to stop.

“I then left the country to South Africa to study fire arms competences, range managements, and ultimately firearms instructor’s course from Magnum Shooting Academy in Benoni. I was already a member of shooting clubs in the country where I gained a passion for an indoor shooting range,” Khotle recalled.

He noted that normally, most shooting ranges in the country open on Sundays only, and this interferes with people’s different schedules such as church attendance.

The instructor then decided to develop an indoor shooting range last year that will enable people to hone their shooting skills any day. Moreover, he observed that Lesotho has a dearth of competence trainers.

“One of my employees was nearly accidentally shot by a client while trying to give him a service. That near accident happened because he (client) did not have proper skills to handle firearms safely, which is one of the skills we sort out through our training course.

“We offer firearm competence training, which the Lesotho Mounted Police Service recognises.

“So, as dealers and concerned citizens, we have decided to establish this facility to train those who need help, to minimize risks of accidents caused by the firearm,” Khotle indicated.

He added that the theory part that he offers covers basically everything one may need to know about firearms such as limits of self-defence, because a gun is not a weapon or something that one needs for criminal purposes.

“I encourage people who own firearms to take the opportunity to train. We help them understand what the law says about the use of firearms, because unlike other countries, our current laws are not strict about having such skills,” he pointed out.

For more details, people may contact Khotle at +266 67320950