Fighting online gambling of government officials in China

An article published by Stephen Wong, a writer for the Asia Times, made the suggestion lately that civil servants and functionaries in response to the latest limitations are moving over to online gambling.

According to Wong’s comments, as longer periods of prison sentences and the chance of being laid off do not stop functionaries from placing wagers, the visits to Macau, the favorite of all gambling spots for functionaries from China, with visa limitations – has simply caused internet casinos to have more appeal to the officials.

According to the internet publication, the endeavors of Beijing to thwart gambling using public money by functionaries of the Communist party as well as by civil servants appear to have had very little effect. By citing a number of instance, Mr. Wong continues to clarify his suppositions. Among those arrested for recent online gambling on horse racing, lotteries and sports on six internet casinos were civil servants and heads of nationally owned companies.       

The way in which Chinese political heads set up numerous campaigns against the civil service gamblers was exposed by Wong in his attempt to suppress the sleaze which is wearing down the people’s confidence in the government of China. The article stated that in a 2008 study of ninety nine high profile rollers from mainland China it was manifested that fifty nine were affiliated to the government in some manner. According to the study which the Macau Polytechnic Institute professor Zeng Zhonglu managed, seven were state firms cashiers, nineteen were nationally owned firms’ executives and thirty three were government functionaries.     

Continuing, the writer claimed that this moved the government last year to enforce visa restrictions on government functionaries. For every three months at least, just one seven day visit is allowed for a mainland functionary according to the new regulations’ restrictions.

In regard to the unexamined public finances China’s law enforcers are doing their best to create greater obstacles for these gambling functionaries. There are those advocating much more stringent punishments for the arrested. However, according to Stephen Wong this cannot change embedded behavior. China requires, according to Wong, an open media and an autonomous legal system for thwarting gambling and corruption linked to it, for the purpose of revealing the public functionaries and their crimes. Although high profile actions can stop gambling for a period of time, in order to liquidate gambling and functionary sleaze completely, the article summed up that Beijing requires political reforms.

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