Senior Reporter
anna-lisa.paul@guardian.co.tt
The authority to grant Firearm Users’ Licences (FULs) must remain with the Commissioner of Police, as any attempt to shift this statutory responsibility could create chaos, inefficiencies and added bureaucracy.
This was the warning from Commissioner Allister Guevarro, responding to Guardian Media following renewed calls to alter the current licensing framework after the Home Invasion (Self-Defence and Defence of Property) Bill 2025 was passed in the Lower House last week.
Guevarro outlined longstanding infrastructural and operational challenges affecting the licensing process, as well as the sensitive “human realities” that must be considered when deciding whether to place a lethal weapon in someone’s hands.
“The current framework for FULs was established to ensure accountability, transparency and public safety, with the CoP and the T&T Police Service serving as the vanguards of the licensing process,” he said.
Pointing to the past, he added: “If history is to teach us anything, it will show that every attempt to interfere with this statutory responsibility has ended in chaos, additional layers of bureaucracy and repeated audits.”
He noted there have been three audits between 2018 and the present, all of which “underscore the dangers of diffusing responsibility away from the Commissioner’s office.”
Guevarro said those audits halted the processing of applications, creating the backlog he is “currently dealing with.”
He stressed that delays were not due to inefficiency but to due diligence.
“This process involves placing a lethal instrument into the hands of individuals,” he said.
Warning against attempts to remove the authority from his office, he said: “Do not remove a wall until you fully understand why it was put up in the first place.”
Guevarro applauded the 2021 amendment to the Firearms Act—which introduced provisional licensing under Section 16(B)—calling it “an excellent idea to strengthen the vetting process.” However, he said it had added a new layer of bureaucracy, as applicants must allow the two-month provisional licence to expire before applying for an FUL.
He underscored the importance of background checks and police Certificates of Character (CoCs), calling them “indispensable safeguards.”
But he admitted the CoC department at the Police Administration Building in Port-of-Spain was in urgent need of an overhaul. The facility, he said, is hampered by “archaic electrical wiring,” and repairing it would require a significant financial investment.
“In these lean financial times, this is not an easy fix,” he said. “Adding another layer into the system without first addressing that issue would only serve to increase bureaucracy rather than improve efficiency.”
Responding to discussions about creating a committee to decide on and grant FULs, Guevarro said, “I hope to God this committee is not thinking of approving FULs without CoCs and background information.”
He revealed that behind many applications lies a delicate and often troubling human element. Spouses and relatives may write letters supporting an application, only to privately contact the Commissioner pleading for it to be denied, citing abuse or coercion.
“Protecting such sources is paramount,” he said. Under Section 21(B) of the Firearms Act, the CoP is empowered to deny permits when credible information raises concerns about public safety.
These denials, however, have led to a flood of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests from attorneys seeking disclosure on behalf of rejected applicants. Guevarro said the TTPS had a duty to safeguard vulnerable family members.
“Have no fear,” he added. “I will deal with each of these FOIA requests in accordance with the law and protect the identities of the victims who have become sources of information.”
He offered a clear assurance: “Ladies, have no fear. As long as the decision to grant an FUL is mine, nobody is getting any FUL to come home and terrorise and abuse you.”
Looking ahead, he said the TTPS has already begun modernising its systems, including testing a digital application platform with 1,000 users. The platform aims to reduce manual handling, speed up background checks and improve transparency.
But he cautioned that efficiencies will remain limited without major upgrades to the underlying IT and electrical infrastructure. “Without modernisation of this infrastructure, we will only be spinning top in mud, and any reform will risk replicating existing delays,” he warned.
Guevarro expressed confidence that a modernised system can deliver “the efficiency, transparency and accountability the public rightfully expects.”
He concluded firmly: “The authority to grant firearm licences must remain vested in the CoP. This will ensure clear accountability, legal responsibility and the protection of vulnerable sources of information.”
He likened recent proposals to remove that authority to “removing the pilot from the cockpit and telling the passengers we are safer with a committee.”
