The so called “forensic investigation”, launched by the South African Trade and Industry Department, turned out to be the bone of contention that made the Minister Rob Davies take the draconian measures of suspending all the authorities of the National Gambling Board who, deliberately or not, brought the coming out of the results of the investigation to a standstill.
The Trade and Industry Department representatives were not willing to give detailed information about the underlying reason that caused the suspensions. All they revealed was that the current situation is temporary and soon everything is expected to fall into place.
The Spokesman of the Department commented that the problematic investigation was supposed to monitor the operations of the National Gambling Board. There were two people, responsible for supervising the everyday activities.
The time of the suspensions coincided with the period when South Africa is about to make significant changes in the gambling rules and regulations. The upcoming law alterations are believed to take the gambling industry to new heights.
Although the suspensions were announced almost a month ago, the local gaming providers had not been informed. They learned about these issues last week.
If the Remote Gambling Bill passes, it would completely change the South Africa gaming regulations. There won’t be any monopolists and the proceedings for issuing a license will be simplified.
According to specialists, the gaming providers that are currently operating are likely to apply for acquiring a remote gambling license if they intend to continue offering their services in the country. However, some additional requirements have to be taken into consideration. Every operator should re-apply for a license on provincial basis. In other words there is a Licensing representative in every province and they are responsible for all the paperwork in their area.
Another beneficial element of the Remote Gambling Bill is that it will protect the players from any violations. Gambling on credit will not be allowed and if a player breaks a rule, they will promptly be excluded.
The acceptance of the bill means that the providers who don’t have a licence will face up hard times and penalties. There won’t be any restrictions of the number of licenses a gambling provider may have but no compromise will be made to those who abuse the law.
In case the authorities spot a violation or find out any illegal gambling activities, the person, responsible for that will spend between 10 and 20 years behind the bars.
For now, the authorities of the Portfolio Committee of the Ministry of Trade and Industry has acquainted themselves with the details of the bill and they are expected to discuss it soon.
Those who are interested in the prompt acceptance of the Remote Gambling Bill expressed their hopes that it will be launched no later than March next year.
