Surabaya: City of Heroes turns into a City of Gamblers
Surabaya: City of Heroes turns into a City of Gamblers
Antara News Agency/Surabaya
Inside the house in Tambak Sari area here, school children were
playing coin-operated games for amusement, while a mother, who
had brought along her baby, was playing for money.
"Surabaya used to be known as a city of heroes, but now it is
popularly known as the gambling city. Gambling dens are
ubiquitous in the city, ranging from arcade games to togel (the
illegal numbers racket) aimed at the low-income bracket," said
Sholeh, the executive director of the Nurul Islam Islamic
Boarding School.
He said it was troubling that despite being officially
illegal, gambling was so popular in the city, particularly as
Indonesia has an Islamic background.
Sholeh was confident the new National Police chief Gen.
Sutanto would be able to wipe out gambling before the seven-day
deadline he set on Monday.
Sholeh said combating gambling was a daunting task for the
police force, as it had become a deep-seated practice in society,
allegedly backed by security and police officers.
"Wiping out gambling will be as tough as eradicating
corruption. Like corruption cases, there are many police officers
who have benefited from gambling," said Sholeh.
Local youth and religious organizations have complained of
voicing their concerns over illegal gambling with the government
and the police only to receive a half-hearted response.
Gambling dens and gaming sites can be found on Jl. Mayjen
Sungkono, Andika Plaza on Jl. Simpang Dukuh, in the Surabaya
Mall, the Mahkota building on Jl. Sudirman and many other places
in the city.
"Surabaya has become the Macao of Indonesia. The symbol of
Surabaya is a crocodile and a shark, but it no longer fits. It
should be replaced with a picture of an arcade game and dice,"
said Luko Djoyo, a youth activist in Surabaya.
Gambling first took off here among the middle to upper class,
but is now popular with people from the lower-income bracket.
There are two main types of gambling in the city: togel and
coin-operated games. Both types of gambling are flourishing in
the residential areas of Tambak sari and Tambak Asri.
"In each neighborhood, there are four or five gambling dens.
The operators rent coin-operated machines from big gambling
operators," said a community figure in Tambak Asri.
He requested anonymity, saying he was afraid of the network of
gang members who profited from the illegal businesses. Luko
estimated the turnover from gambling in the city reached Rp 20
billion a day.
Syukur Amaludin, a Surabaya councillor, said he had received
countless reports of gambling in the city but was not confident
it could be stopped.
Dudung, a youth activist, said gambling could never be
eradicated as it was backed by security officers.
"Every Saturday night, you can see police and military
officers turning up at the gambling dens, one by one, in order to
pick up protection money," said Dudung.
Ali Maschan Moesa said the security officers had not been
serious in combating gambling.
They would arrest the gambling operators but release them a
few days later, he said.
"The House of Representatives should also propose an
amendment to the Criminal Code law -- the amended law should
stipulate stiffer sentences for gambling operators," said Sholeh.