The Sporting Shooters Association of Australia Inc. has completely rejected a recent claim in the Sydney Morning Herald by ex-Deputy Prime Minister, Tim Fischer, that millions of dollars from the National Rifle Association of America had come into Australia in the wake of the gun 'buy-back' for use against the Coalition government.
Spokesperson for the SSAA Inc. Mr Roy Smith said the claim “was complete nonsense” and that if Mr Fischer had evidence to support his assertion he should either “put up or shut up.”
Mr Smith went on to say that if Mr Fischer had any understanding of the NRA's operations, or its relationship with organizations in Australia, he would know that they do not hand out money and certainly not millions of dollars.
Mr Smith said that of far more concern was Mr Fischer's admission in the Sydney Morning Herald article that he openly broke the law by not properly securing his firearms as required by New South Wales legislation prior to the 'buy-back' scheme.
Mr Smith said that considering most shooters had already done the right thing and complied with the NSW storage requirements before the changes to the legislation in 1996, they would be outraged to think that one of the new amendment's chief sponsors was openly announcing that he had been both grossly irresponsible and outside of the law.