Robert HersovChairman, BitMach · Investor/entrepreneur

ROB HERSOV: The Real Reason They Want To Take Your Guns

Name: ROB HERSOV: The Real Reason They Want To Take Your Guns
Uploaded: 2025-11-28T14:01:33+00:00
Duration: 4 min 7 s
Channel: Robert Hersov
Description: In this YouTube monologue, Robert Basil Hersov argues that South Africa's Firearms Control Amendment Bill is a political tool designed to disarm…

28 Nov 2025 · 4 min

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4:07

In this YouTube monologue, Robert Basil Hersov argues that South Africa's Firearms Control Amendment Bill is a political tool designed to disarm law‑abiding citizens while leaving criminals untouched. He outlines the bill’s key provisions – stricter self‑defence licence criteria (Section 13) and a six‑gun cap for hunters and sport shooters (Section 16) – and explains how these restrictions also affect private security firms. Hersov backs his claim with South Africa’s high murder rate (45 per 100 000, five times the global average) and slow police response times, especially in rural areas. He cites a 2015 Wits School of Governance report showing little correlation between gun control and crime reduction, emphasizing that crime falls when policing improves. The video highlights corruption and weapon smuggling, noting that arms from Namibian police have been trafficked to Cape Town gangs. Hersov frames the legislation as an ANC‑driven effort to consolidate power, drawing historical parallels to Venezuela and Zimbabwe, and invokes Max Weber’s notion of the state’s monopoly on violence. He concludes with a call to action: publicly oppose the bill, submit objections, focus on policing reforms, tighten border control, and prosecute corrupt officials, positioning the issue as one of freedom rather than merely firearms.

Chapters

They say it's about safety, but this new Firearms Control Amendment Bill isn't about keeping you safe. It's about keeping you powerless. I'm Rob Hersov, and today we're going to talk about a government that wants to take away your right to defend yourself while leaving criminals to roam free. Let's call it what it is. It's an attack on lawful citizens disguised as public safety. Let's start by looking at the facts. The Firearms Control Amendment Bill aims to restrict self-defense licenses under Section 13, forcing South Africans to prove extraordinary circumstances to qualify. It slaps a 6 firearm limit on dedicated hunters and sports shooters under Section 16, and these are the very people who train responsibly Private security firms, already on the frontline protecting us, will face new restrictions on what weapons they can use to protect their clients. Meanwhile, South Africa's murder rate is 45 per 100,000 people, 5 times the global average. And police response times? I mean, in rural provinces, it can take over an hour for help to arrive. If it arrives at all. So who are these laws really protecting? Let's think about it. This bill doesn't disarm criminals. It disarms citizens like you and me. The government's own commission study, the Wits School of Governance report in 2015, found little evidence that firearm control laws reduced crime. Crime fell when policing improved, not because of new regulations. In plain English, when the state does its job, crime drops. When it doesn't, you pay. And while citizens jump through bureaucratic hoops, criminals buy guns from corrupt police stores and border smugglers. Reports show Namibian police weapons—AK-47s, Uzis, Nampol pistols have been smuggled to Cape Town gangs. So when the ANC government says it's about public order, what they really mean is ANC control over you. An armed citizen is independent. They look after their own safety. An unarmed citizen is compliant. And history teaches us, from Venezuela to Zimbabwe, that once you give up your right to defend yourself, you rarely get it back. The state's monopoly on violence is only legitimate if it protects its citizens. This is a quote from Max Weber. So here's what has to happen. Here's what we got to do. We have to reject the Firearms Amendment Bill loudly, publicly, and in writing when submissions open. The DA is going to do that. You need to do it too. We need to focus on policing, not punishing the law-abiding. And we need to fix border control and prosecute corrupt officials selling guns to gangs. We need to measure success not by how many citizens are disarmed, but by how many criminals are behind bars. If this was a company, a business analogy, government's risk management has collapsed. They're firing their best operators, responsible citizens, while leaving the warehouse doors open for thieves to just pour in and take what they want. And the turnaround plan is obvious: secure the assets, empower competence, fire the saboteurs. Do not outsource your safety to a failing state. Defend your rights. Defend your family. This isn't about guns. It's about freedom. Share this message. Speak up before silence becomes the law.