Novice operaterja
Ecuador – New project would bring casinos back to Ecuador
By Phil - 2. maj 2019
A new project has been put forward that would allow for the reopening of all the casinos in Ecuador.
The project was put forward by Mauricio Villacís, President of the Association of Ex-Workers for the casino sector. According to Villacís the country is losing out on millions in tax revenue and “more than 20,000 jobs directly and indirectly linked to this activity, with an approximate investment of about $400m.”
Projekt je že v rokah ministrstev za delo, turizem in gospodarstva ter davčne uprave (SRI). Upajo, da bodo preko njih projekt na koncu predstavili predsedniku Lenínu Morenu, ki je leta 2017 postal predsednik Ekvadorja in je veliko bolj sredinski kot njegov levičarski predhodnik Rafael Correa.
The supporter of the new bill argues that between its neighbouring countries Peru and Colombia “we have data that they (casinos) report profits of about US$300m.” Of that amount they say as much as 15 per cent is generated by Ecuadorian players.
Villacís said that this means that “some 45 million dollars go to Colombia and Peru for gambling, not to mention online gambling, in which Ecuador has no regulations,” meaning that millions more is probably being gambled via offshore gambling sites.
One of the lawmakers to publicly make a stand on the issue is the Mayor of Quito, Jorge Yunda, who said that the reopening of casinos should be part of a referendum when talking about extending the opening hours of nightclubs.
The bill includes the repeal of Article 236 of the Comprehensive Criminal Code (COIP), which prohibits gambling for profit. Villacís said that casinos could be allowed again either via a referendum or via the Constitutional Court. Among the proposed changes is the creation of a new gaming regulatory body.
Septembra 2010 je takratni predsednik Ekvadorja Rafael Correa napovedal, da želi njegova vlada prepovedati igralnice. Ker je Correa trdil, da so igralnice v Ekvadorju postale leglo korupcije in pranja denarja, je lokalnim tiskom povedal, da bo njegova administracija to vprašanje postavila ekvadorskemu ljudstvu kot del referenduma. Če bi se ekvadorsko ljudstvo strinjalo s predsednikovim mnenjem o tem vprašanju, bi bilo vseh petinpetdeset igralnic in dvoran za bingo v Ekvadorju nemudoma zaprtih.
Skoraj štirje milijoni Ekvadorcev (47.7 odstotka volivcev) so glasovali, da so za takšno potezo, kar pomeni, da je veliko kvalificiranih in izkušenih delavcev v igralnicah, od katerih so mnogi delali v industriji že skoraj 15 let, ostalo brez službe.
Caption: The old Casino Sol in Ecudaor
