Firman defends failure in curbing gambling<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
City police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani on Wednesday defended
\nthe police's failure to eradicate gambling here, arguing that a
\nweak legal system had prevented city police from arresting
\nsuspected gambling bosses.<\/p>\n
Firman, who had earlier proclaimed that he would wipe out
\ngambling in the city in three days and fire police chiefs who
\nfailed to stamp out the practice in their respective areas, now
\nsays that police could only arrest people who were actually
\ncaught in the act of gambling.<\/p>\n
\"Owners of all the big gambling dens have closed their
\noperations. According to the law, we must have hard evidence to
\nbe able to arrest people. He or she must be caught in the middle
\nof the game at the gambling site with his or her gambling
\nequipment,\" said.<\/p>\n
Firman said that his officers would continue to watch the
\nclosed gambling dens, and promised that they would arrest any
\nowner who dared to open their dens again.<\/p>\n
National Police chief Gen. Sutanto last Monday gave a one-week
\nultimatum to provincial police chiefs to eradicate gambling in
\ntheir respective areas. He warned that if they did not comply
\nwith his order they would be fired and face criminal charges.<\/p>\n
Firman quickly ordered his top officers, precinct and sub-
\nprecinct chiefs to eradicate gambling in the capital within three
\ndays with the threat that if there was a single report of
\ngambling in a certain area, the respective area chief would be
\nrelieved of his or her duties.<\/p>\n
Immediately after Firman's order police began cracking down on
\ngambling dens in Jakarta. They announced the arrest of over 500
\ngamblers and den operators. However, many have complained that
\nnone of the big gambling dens have been raided and no big-time
\ngamblers have been arrested.<\/p>\n
Despite the fact that they haven't arrested any big-time
\ngamblers, city police claimed on Monday that all precinct and
\nsubprecinct chiefs had successfully closed down all of the
\ngambling dens in the capital and thus none would be fired.<\/p>\n
Jakarta police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Bagus Ekodanto, the
\nhead of the gambling eradication program, said that there was no
\nmore gambling in the Greater Jakarta area because all officers
\nhad performed well in eradicating it in their own areas.<\/p>\n
Several observers, however, have harshly criticized the
\ngambling eradication operation, calling their efforts \"a joke\" as
\nonly small-time gamblers had been arrested with big fish being
\nleft untouched. Others have said that according to the law police
\ncould raid even already closed gambling dens and arrest their
\nowners.<\/p>\n
Executive director of the Independent Monitoring Alliance on
\nState Apparatus (AMIPKA) David Ridwan Betz pointed out that the
\npolice had done nothing even though it was clear that, for
\ninstance, Harco Mangga Dua and Glodok in West Jakarta as well as
\nAyer were being used as gambling centers involving billions of
\nrupiah.<\/p>\n
He added that police in fact already knew the identities of
\nall the big gambling bosses in the capital.<\/p>\n
A legal expert at the University of Indonesia Rudy Strio said
\nthat police should have the courage to raid big gambling dens and
\narrest their operators because they had the authority to do so.<\/p>\n
\"If they know that the places are being used for gambling then
\nthey should raid the places and confiscate all the gambling
\nequipment. They can also arrest the owners. Why must they wait
\nfor them to reopen?\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/firman-defends-failure-in-curbing-gambling-1447893297",
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