PETALING JAYA: A new law is being drafted to curb online gambling and might be tabled at the next parliamentary sitting, deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof said today.
He said there were growing concerns over the social impact of online gambling, and the need for a more comprehensive legal framework on illegal gambling, Bernama reported him as saying in Kuching.
He said the proposed legislation is expected to be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat as early as the next sitting, subject to the bill’s readiness.
“Illegal gambling, if left unchecked, can affect social wellbeing, especially among our younger generation. That is why the government is treating this matter seriously,” he said after a constituency event in Petra Jaya, where he is the local MP.
Fadillah said the proposed law is still under review as to whether it will be introduced as a new Act or incorporated as amendments to existing legislation, such as the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953.
Once enacted, the law would strengthen enforcement mechanisms, particularly on online gambling, and facilitate more effective action by the police and other relevant authorities.
In January, home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail told the Dewan Rakyat that the police had proposed a review of existing laws to deal with the evolving nature of online gambling. Among the proposals were to amend the Common Gaming Houses Act and to incorporate provisions on online gambling offences into a proposed Cyber Crime Bill.
He was responding to a question by Batang Lupar MP Shafizan Kepli about what action was being taken to curb the spread of online gambling in rural areas of Sarawak.
In November last year, Sarawak police said efforts to curb online gambling were focussed on identifying more effective ways to block access to such platforms, in line with technological developments that enable gambling activities to be conducted via mobile devices.
Sarawak police commissioner Zainal Abdullah said a new approach was needed to enhance system-blocking measures.
