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| Gambling Board close illegal sites |
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by
Joseph Langa, 24 November 2003
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18:14:25
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The Gambling Board of Malawi over the weekend sealed seven gambling sites in the capital Lilongwe at the beginning of a nationwide campaign to close down illegal sites and machines.
Some of the sites closed on Saturday night included Jackpot City in Kawale which had 13 gambling machines and other sites in devil street in old town, City Council Rest House, Maimba’s Place in Area 18 and Kanengo Trading Centre.
Malawi Gaming Board operations manager Sosten Lingwalanya told owners of the closed places it was illegal under the law to operate casinos without a gambling licence.
In an interview later, Lingwalanya said the board placed advertisements in the press for operators to apply for licences before end of September but said only a few did.
He said only Amusement Entertainment Centre in Biwi Township applied for a licence in Lilongwe, saying the board is currently processing it.
“Some gambling sites did not apply which means they are not interested in operating legally. That’s why we are closing them. We are expected to move country wide until the country has been cleared of all illegal gamblers,” said Lingwalanya.
According to Lingwalanya, illegal gambling sites use machines which are normally not approved for gambling in line with the country’s gambling regulations and often rip the public (gamblers) of their money.
“It’s often not possible to win on such machines because the winning probability is very low and the machines can easily be subjected to manipulation because they are not inspected. An approved machine is supposed to have a 75 percent winning probability.
“That’s why all the machines in casinos and other approved sites are subjected to inspection to ensure that there is no violation,” he said, adding that the board has the power to withdraw licences if they note irregularities or violation of the regulations.
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