Firman defends failure in curbing gambling

Firman defends failure in curbing gambling

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

City police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani on Wednesday defended
the police's failure to eradicate gambling here, arguing that a
weak legal system had prevented city police from arresting
suspected gambling bosses.

Firman, who had earlier proclaimed that he would wipe out
gambling in the city in three days and fire police chiefs who
failed to stamp out the practice in their respective areas, now
says that police could only arrest people who were actually
caught in the act of gambling.

"Owners of all the big gambling dens have closed their
operations. According to the law, we must have hard evidence to
be able to arrest people. He or she must be caught in the middle
of the game at the gambling site with his or her gambling
equipment," said.

Firman said that his officers would continue to watch the
closed gambling dens, and promised that they would arrest any
owner who dared to open their dens again.

National Police chief Gen. Sutanto last Monday gave a one-week
ultimatum to provincial police chiefs to eradicate gambling in
their respective areas. He warned that if they did not comply
with his order they would be fired and face criminal charges.

Firman quickly ordered his top officers, precinct and sub-
precinct chiefs to eradicate gambling in the capital within three
days with the threat that if there was a single report of
gambling in a certain area, the respective area chief would be
relieved of his or her duties.

Immediately after Firman's order police began cracking down on
gambling dens in Jakarta. They announced the arrest of over 500
gamblers and den operators. However, many have complained that
none of the big gambling dens have been raided and no big-time
gamblers have been arrested.

Despite the fact that they haven't arrested any big-time
gamblers, city police claimed on Monday that all precinct and
subprecinct chiefs had successfully closed down all of the
gambling dens in the capital and thus none would be fired.

Jakarta police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Bagus Ekodanto, the
head of the gambling eradication program, said that there was no
more gambling in the Greater Jakarta area because all officers
had performed well in eradicating it in their own areas.

Several observers, however, have harshly criticized the
gambling eradication operation, calling their efforts "a joke" as
only small-time gamblers had been arrested with big fish being
left untouched. Others have said that according to the law police
could raid even already closed gambling dens and arrest their
owners.

Executive director of the Independent Monitoring Alliance on
State Apparatus (AMIPKA) David Ridwan Betz pointed out that the
police had done nothing even though it was clear that, for
instance, Harco Mangga Dua and Glodok in West Jakarta as well as
Ayer were being used as gambling centers involving billions of
rupiah.

He added that police in fact already knew the identities of
all the big gambling bosses in the capital.

A legal expert at the University of Indonesia Rudy Strio said
that police should have the courage to raid big gambling dens and
arrest their operators because they had the authority to do so.

"If they know that the places are being used for gambling then
they should raid the places and confiscate all the gambling
equipment. They can also arrest the owners. Why must they wait
for them to reopen?" he told The Jakarta Post.