Privatization of Games of Chance in Turkey

Oct 12, 2014
Privatization of Games of Chance in Turkey
According to Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davuloglu, the Turkish Finance Ministry will privatize all games of chance. The privatization of Sports Toto and the Horse Racing Authority is expected to generate billions for State coffers but religious bodies are expressing their disapproval for any gambling. “We are faced with the reality of gambling gripping Turkey in the guise of games of chance. The government intends to privatize the games of chance to wash off its hands. This would amount to saying, 'We don't do it as a state, but you go ahead with the private sector.' People will be further encouraged through a series of new games and television ads,” Milli Gazete wrote. “It's all the same when the private sector operates them. Nothing changes. It's forbidden,” Mehmet Nuri Yilmaz, former head of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate (RAD) said to Al-Monitor. “They privatize everything, but even then the government still benefits from the games of chance. It makes no difference if they are run by the government or privatized, they are equally illegitimate.” “The state doesn't care what is legitimate and illegitimate, said Yilmaz. “It is after the money, no matter where it comes from.”
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