No gambling in 3 days: City police

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

City police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani has vowed to wipe out gambling and other social vices in the capital within three days, much shorter than the one-week deadline given by National Police Chief Gen. Sutanto.

And to achieve this ambitious endeavor, Firman gathered on Tuesday all sub-district and municipal chiefs of police in Jakarta, Depok and Bekasi and had them sign a contract, wherein each pledged to crack down on gambling and other vice in their respective areas.

"If we continue to receive SMS messages or direct complaints from the public or reports in media that gambling dens still exist in a certain area after three days, we will replace that area's chief without an investigation or a hearing process," Firman asserted during a coordination meeting of all police chiefs and the city police's top brass on Tuesday.

The Police have provided a short message service (SMS) number 1717 for Jakarta residents to report crimes to the police.

Firman's move was apparently part of Firman's effort to translate the order of new National Police Chief Gen. Sutanto, who on Monday gave a one-week deadline for provincial police chiefs to eradicate gambling in their respective areas.

Sutanto, who has a track record of being very tough on gambling, warned the regional police chiefs that if they did not comply with his order, they would be fired and face criminal charges.

Recent reports alleged that at least 14 regional chiefs were involved in the protection of gambling operations.

Gambling is very popular among Jakartans, despite being officially illegal, and police officers have been accused of aiding the operations or turning a blind eye to them.

The illegal numbers racket, known locally as the togel, for instance, is popular in most kampongs. At least three togel agents, which have hundreds of customers each day, can be found in all the low-income neighborhoods throughout Jakarta.

Several agents also operate at bus stations, train station and traditional markets to lure customers.

For lower-income people, togel is only one of several gambling choices, which include a variety of dice and card games, while for wealthy Jakartans, the game of choice can usually be found in the many casinos across the city, from roulette or poker to slot machines.

Despite police claims that they have regularly conducted raids to cleanse the city of gambling dens and other gaming sites, most have continued to flourish across the capital.

Most people believe the accusations that police officers and military personnel supplement their incomes by acting as gambling den protectors. A group of casino owners recently revealed that a number of two- and three-star generals based at the national police headquarters were their backers.

Firman also said on Tuesday that a team of police in charge of monitoring the progress of is gambling crackdown order would soon be established.

The team, he added, would be headed by city police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Bagus Ekodanto, along with other high-ranking officers, including the city's internal affairs chief, operations chief and intelligence division chief.

During the meeting, all of the area police chiefs vowed to fulfill all police duties, including internal re-organization, fighting bribery, drugs and gambling.

"I have signed a contract requiring me to take care of gambling, drugs, street crimes and smuggling in three months. I require my officers to be able to report their performance in two weeks before my deadline," Firman said.

He said that the team would evaluate the performance of all the officers every week.