The Casino at Emerald Bay, describing itself as “a pinnace entertainment company,” ran an advertisement in The Freeport News earlier this week seeking staff to fill positions in virtually all areas of the casino operation in preparation for its opening in May.
The ad notes that it is “Exuma’s only casino offering 5,000 sq. ft. of Monte Carlo style gaming action in an intimate and elegant setting.” Grand Bahama no doubt was chosen as the area for the casino’s recruitment drive because there are many former employees of Crown Plaza Resort and Casino at the Royal Oasis who are still unemployed after damages caused by the devastating hurricanes in 2004 resulted in the closure of the casino.
Certainly, this is a great opportunity for them to find employment, although relocating to Exuma would create a sort of hardship for those who have homes here that they are still paying mortgages on and children in school. But after being unemployed for more than a year, that’s a sacrifice that most of them may not mind making.
There is no question that “big time” casino gambling in Exuma will boost the economy of that island tremendously and will probably be the catalyst for a population explosion. Hopefully, it will not endanger the island’s reputation as one of the most beautiful in The Bahamas, with a chain of cays that stretch like a string of pearls in tranquil blue waters along the northern coast of the main island.
This raises a very important question: what is the government’s policy with regard to the extension of casino gambling to those pristine islands of the country that have not yet been environmentally damaged by ill-advised projects, as is the case with the quaint little island of Bimini, which in the near future will also have a casino? Is it the government’s intention to grant a casino licence to every developer who proposes building a 500-room hotel on a family island or whatever the criterion is for an investor to be considered for a casino licence?
Surely, this is not good developmental planning for the country. Although tourism is the country’s number one industry, and gambling has proven to be a strong magnet for attracting a certain type of tourist, no matter how lucrative the investment proposal may be, a limit has to be placed on just how many of our islands will be used for this purpose.
What’s more, it is absolutely amazing that the religious leaders in this country have been so silent on this issue. It is the epitome of hypocrisy for Bahamas Christian Council President Rev. Dr. William Thompson to adamantly declare that he is opposed to the introduction of a lottery in The Bahamas, and remain mum on the spread of legalized casino gambling in the country.
At the onset of the introduction of big-time casino gambling in the country in 1964, with the opening of a casino at the Lucayan Beach Resort in Grand Bahama, there were fears that this “evil habit” ﾖ as some ministers of religion branded it at the time ﾖ would have a deleterious impact on our society.
Their view was based on the belief that all gambling at this level has some connection to organized crime, and this bolstered fears at the time that the concomitant ills associated with organized casino gambling would become endemic to our society, such as widespread prostitution and rampant drug use. Subsequently, a major casino was built at Paradise Island and another at Cable Beach, but there is not evidence to suggest that the introduction of casino gambling is responsible for whatever degree of prostitution currently exists in the country or for the widespread use of drugs at all levels of our society.
Nonetheless, this may be one of the reasons why the law was passed prohibiting Bahamians from gambling in the casinos, which today is still one of the most egregious acts of injustice against Bahamians being enforced by law. It is totally not right that a visitor to this country has the right to do something legally in The Bahamas that is against the law for a Bahamian to do. Of course, the fact that this law is still being enforced may be one of the reasons why religious leaders seem not to care whether casino gambling is legalized in every island in The Bahamas, since Bahamians are prohibited from wagering in the casinos portions of the tithes they put in the collection plate Sunday mornings.
This may also explain why these same religious leaders are so vehemently opposed to the legalization of the lottery and the numbers game. What they probably fear is that their tithes would decrease if these games were legal, but they may be surprised to find out just how many of their parishioners ﾖ and even some of their colleagues, who are not as committed to the practice of hypocrisy as they are ﾖ play the numbers daily.
I do, and as a committed Christian, I do not believe I am breaking any of God’s laws when I follow a hunch or interpret a dream and put a dollar or two on 064 or 640, as I am currently doing for the next week or so after celebrating my 64th birthday on March 7. Frankly, I was deeply distressed when 466 actually came in on my birthday and I did not have it in a box, especially after I was told by someone who uses an astrological chart to determine which numbers they are going to play that “6” represents man. Had I boxed 466 for three dollars, I would have had at least $800.
But seriously, though, it is time for the religious hypocrisy to stop. What’s more, although there is a statute on the books that deems the numbers game illegal, selling and buying numbers surely must rank very low on the scale of “serious” crimes committed in this country.
And it is a fact that it is virtually impossible to enforce this law. Indeed, law enforcement officials and just about everyone else know exactly where the numbers houses ﾗ or web shops, as those that have become computerized are now known ﾗ and if the police wanted to commit the manpower and other resources necessary to shut them down, they could do so tomorrow.
But there will only be a temporary halt in their operations. These same houses will be back in operation within a week or so and doing business as usual, probably from satellite locations at the beginning, but they will eventually revert to controlling their operations from the “main office” that was shut down by the police.
So let’s stop the hypocrisy and legalize the lottery and the numbers game and use the proceeds for a worthwhile purpose. In Florida and a number of other states in the United States where the lottery is legal, proceeds are used to improve the education system, and heaven knows there is a need in The Bahamas for improvement in this area, given the woeful “D” average at which students in our high schools are performing.
By OSWALD BROWN, Freeport News
Oswald T. Brown is editor and general manager of The Freeport News. Comments on this column can be sent to androsboy@hotmail.com
