78 enquiries on family exclusion order
for casinos in two months
The first of Singapore's two integrated resorts - the Marina Bay
Sands Integrated Resort - will be opening later this year.
As part of social safeguards to ensure that the opening of the
casinos does not lead to more gambling problems, the National
Council on Problem Gambling began accepting applications for the
Family Exclusion Order this April.
Since then, close to 80 enquiries have been made by those
seeking to bar their family members from the casinos.
Jeremy Koh has more.
Are you preocupied with gambling?
Do you need to gamble with increasing amounts of money in order
to achieve the desired excitement?
These are among the questions which counsellors at the Tanjong
Pagar Family Service Centre use to make a diagnosis of problem
gambling.
The centre is the first point of contact for problem gamblers
and their family members who are seeking to bar them from the
casinos.
Charles Lee is a Senior Counsellor at the centre.
"We have some who are cooperative and we have some who may still
have issues of resistance and reluctance so these are some of the
things we need to deal with. For example for resistant respondents,
i will mainly deal with their anger issues by giving them more
information on why it's important for them to come in for the
session."
Of the 78 who have made enquiries, 14 have already formally
applied for their family members to be included under the Family
Exclusion Order.
Most of the 14 gamblers are Chinese males, aged between 30 and
60 and have received at least an 'O' level education.
Later this month, hearings will be conducted into two of these
applications - both initiated by wives against their husbands.
If that goes through, their husbands will be the first two to be
barred from the local casinos.
But will the Family Exclusion Order really solve the issue of
problem gambling?
Mr Lee again.
"This order is important because it tells the family members
that they have a right not to suffer the consequences of their
family members who have the addiction. Regarding that of course
everything has its limitations but at least something is done for
the family members in this case."
--938Live