Snapshots of Hot Issues

While I agree that gambling problems are almost impossible to overcome in society, may I offer the view that even without the casinos, there would still be this problem? Gambling is a mainstay in any society as it provides an alluring prospect to people to either exponentially increase their wealth or just to enjoy the exhilaration of risk-taking. Even if the casinos, or Singapore Pools for that matter, were not set up in Singapore, the problem of gambling among citizens will not go away just like that. In fact, it may cause gambling to go underground, causing another myriad of problems (which could be even more difficult to solve). So why not harness this money via legal means?

The setting up of the casinos was mainly to offer another alternative to tourists when visiting the region, and to compete with Genting, Macau etc. Millions of dollars from Malaysian tourists alone are pouring in through our casinos each day, aiding our economy. While I do not dispute the fact that these avenues for gambling/betting also contribute to creating societal problems such as problem gambling, I feel that the most important thing we can do is to educate our citizens about the negative implications of problem gambling.

In schools we can inculcate in students the importance of financial planning, or on a lower level, how to use money wisely. While it is important to start from young, The majority of our population has completed schooling. In their case, we may increase our efforts in public advertisement campaigns, educating the public to only spend their spare cash on gambling, the harm problem gambilng may cause to their loved ones (currently undergoing), etc. These posters, TV advertisements, radio announcements, billboards etc have to be massively publicised so that people see them regularly and so the message can set in.

Alternatively, may I suggest that we raise that casino entry levy to $150? In my opinion this would deter even more Singaporeans from entering the casinos to splurge their hard-earned money.

Needless to say, these are long term solutions, and will take months to implement and take effect. Hopefully we can all work towards alleviating the societal woes of problem gambling while maintaining our status as an attractive regional tourist destination.

Increasing levy does not solve the problem.
Those people who put their hope into gambling won't care even if levy is $500.

I agree, increasing it would just cause them to lose more.

There is a simple solution to the problems of PR and Foreign workers gambling in the Casinos.

All work permit holders and professional pass holders should be included in the persons classified as local.

There is a need to increase the levy to make sure that less Singaporeans or locals can afford to go into the casinos to gamble. Perhaps a levy of S$1,000 would be a stronger deterrent.

For those who can still afford to pay the levy and gamble, the government should compile a list of such gamblers to make sure that they can really survive the problems associated with consistent gambling habits.