FijiVillage reports: 'Apart from helping alleviate poverty, the idea of casinos in Fiji can also keep us from relying on other countries.
Those were the words of Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama who said the PM's Office is now actively exploring the concept of setting up casinos in Fiji.'
WTCRAP!!! This is another example of how a failed, unintelligent man has to stoop down low to try and save an economy he has blown up to smithereens, with no clear solution in sight.
Our country is a small nation with enough of its worries and social problems to be even THINKING about the addition of casinos. Voreqe and his so-called economic "saviours" are set on only one track of thinking - a quick fix!!!
Of course, there are some advantages to having casinos, but with the already allegations of corruption that Voreqe used to brainwash the people, in trying to coax them to believe in his mission, casinos will definitely not take that problem away. It is most definitely going to contribute to it.
From small island nations like Macau to bigger nations like the US and Australia, where casinos were set-up, it's the grassroots people that suffered the social consequences of these establishments, if there is a lack of proper supervision on these establishments. Gambling addiction rose, and money that was meant to be spent on families, were spent in casinos. So, who became the winners? The high-roller owners of casinos, the government bodies that support them, but not the people.
Take for example the island nation of Macau. Read on...
Gaming wealth comes at a cost for Macau
5 July 2008
South China Morning Post
Tapping into gambling as a mainspring of economic growth can create its own problems, as Macau is finding out. Among fresh reminders, authorities on the mainland - the main source of customers for Macau's casinos - have clamped down on visas for visits to Macau by officials, casino high rollers and now ordinary visitors. To inject some social equity into windfall gains from the casino boom, the Macau government has resorted to giving cash bonuses to residents - not the best means of bridging a widening wealth gap.
These steps highlight unwelcome social side effects of gambling and a gaming-led economy. But neither is a long-term solution. Tourism, after all, remains an important pillar of Macau's economy. The mainland is the dominant source of visitors. Cutting back on them for long will hurt other sectors. And cash handouts will do nothing to rein in inflation, which is hurting the majority who have not shared in the benefits of the gaming boom.
By imposing restrictions on freedom of movement, mainland authorities, typically, are treating symptoms of social problems instead of the root causes. To be sure, officials and businesspeople visiting Macau are often distracted by the lure of a quick profit on the casino tables, not to mention those who do not mind gambling with taxpayers' and shareholders' money. But where there is a will there is a way and Macau cannot be put on visitor rations for ever. Rooting out corruption and raising the standards of accountability and corporate governance will be more effective in the long run, along with closer scrutiny of casino operations by Macau authorities. As for ordinary tourists, they are not known for paying multiple visits to the casinos.
Both Macau and Beijing need to look at structural problems, such as a wage gap driven by the casinos. Handouts do nothing in the long term to help small and medium-sized businesses struggling for survival against crippling costs. Nor will they help find jobs for a future pool of uneducated former card dealers lured into quitting school early for big money. Only by thinking outside the roulette wheel will the government find sustainable solutions.
The bottom-line is...any money that we have is better spent on EDUCATION, so we can properly equip our future generation for a future that is not like the time when Voreqe was growing up. Casinos will not solve our long term economic problem. It will only exacerbate it.
SO, DOWN WITH VOREQE'S IDEA OF CASINOS!!! DON'T BECOME A PAWN!!!
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