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Friday 25 June 2010

Rafidah: Licensed betting will curb illegal gambling

The Star 
by IZATUN SHARI and MUGUNTAN VANAR

PETALING JAYA: Former Wanita Umno chief Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz has backed legal sports betting saying that it will help regulate gambling among non-Muslims.

She said licensing would curb the spread of illegal gambling which had been going on for many years.

“Illegal gambling does exist, including football syndicates. We’ve talked about it during several Cabinet meetings (in the past). Legalising it will provide non-Muslims an avenue for gambling.


“If it is not regulated, then we will not be able to know who is gambling and there will be no legal recourse if they are cheated,’’ she said.

Furthermore, she said conditions such as minimum age, maximum betting amount and where gambling operations are carried out could be laid out.

“Now, illegal syndicates do not have to pay taxes and play by their own rules.”

The activity, if legalised, would mean that the Government could collect revenue and channel them to a separate fund to help the needy, she added.

The controversy began last month when Berjaya Corp Bhd announced that the Finance Ministry had given approval for the re-issuance to Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd of the licence to carry out sports betting operations.

However, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak later said that the ministry had yet to issue the licence and that it was in the midst of finalising discussions over the terms and conditions.

Umno Youth has come out against the proposal, saying that it will bring more bad than good. Its chief Khairy Jamaluddin said that after getting views from the grassroots, its stand was to oppose legalised football betting.

“We hope a statement that the Government has agreed (to issue the licence) is not true,” he told reporters after opening the Tawau Umno Youth divisional delegates meeting.

Cheras Umno division chief Datuk Syed Ali Alhabshee stressed that it was appropriate for the Government to issue the licence but there should be stringent enforcement.

“Licence should be approved for gambling involving non-Muslims while Muslims are aware that gambling is prohibited by the religion,” he said in his blog yesterday.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Ya AP minister, the chinese will be addicted to gambling and many families will be broken, just like the OPIUM day in China, all this could be the uiterior motive of the present mca(running dog), mic(another running dog) and umno goverment. Non muslim must not be fool. Vincent Tan should withdrawn from this gambling business that his own race will suffer.