Against "Online" Gambling, President Jokowi Holds Special Meeting Regarding Online Gambling

The government is preparing to eradicate "online" gambling. The meeting was held at the Merdeka Palace, Thursday (18/4/2024).

TIM KOMPAS

The activities of dozens of workers on the third floor of the Sadewa Building at Kompong Dewa Resort, Sihanoukville, Cambodia, Tuesday (5/12/2023), before midnight.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The Indonesian government will be more serious about dealing with online gambling (online) which has trapped many citizens. For this reason, President Joko Widodo chaired a closed meeting specifically to discuss online gambling, Thursday (18/4/2024) afternoon, at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta.

The meeting was also attended by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin. In addition, present were Minister of Political, Legal and Security Affairs Hadi Tjahjanto; Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto; Minister of Law and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly; Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara; Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi; Secretary of State Pratikno; Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung; Attorney General St Burhanudin; Head of the Police General (Pol) Listyo Sigit Prabowo; and Chairman of the Financial Services Authority Commissioner Mahendra Siregar.

Online gambling destroys the lives of citizens who are caught in it. In the daily investigative coverage of Kompas, December 2023, online gamblers usually also get into debt with online loans to cover their desire to continue gambling.

Also read: "Online" Gambling Threatens the Demographic Bonus

TIM KOMPAS

Monitoring the Wi-Fi network at Kompong Dewa Resort, Sihanoukville, Cambodia, early December 2023. There is the name IDN in the internet network list.

The problem is, online gambling cannot be eradicated. Operated from other countries, such as in Cambodia in Kompas's coverage, online gambling employs dozens of people in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

Online gambling seems impossible to eradicate. Operated from other countries, such as in Cambodia in Kompas's coverage, online gambling employs dozens of people in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

Online gambling sites are easy to find on the internet. In fact, people were suddenly sent a link to participate in online gambling with all its promises. On the other hand, the eradication of online gambling seems dull because it is said that the mafia is so strong.

Meanwhile, online gambling has almost lured many people in Jakarta and other remote parts of the country. As reported by the Public Relations website of the Indonesian National Police Headquarters on Thursday, the Nunukan District Police in North Kalimantan reported that as a result of online gambling addiction, a teenager dared to steal from a shop and was apprehended by the East Sebatik Police on Friday (2/2/2024).

The Head of Nunukan Police, Adjunct Commissioner Taufik Nurmandia, through the Public Relations Officer, Adjunct Commissioner Siswati, stated that on Thursday (February 1st, 2024) at around 10:00 PM local time, sister-in-law SA (the complainant's sister-in-law) came to the complainant's mother-in-law's store located in Sebatik District, Nunukan.

Furthermore, upon arriving there, SA found that the store door, which was previously locked with a padlock, had been damaged and left open.

Breaking stores for online gambling

"Then, a stone was found in front of the shop door which was suspected to have been used to damage the lock that was installed on the shop door," he said.

After that, SA entered the store to inspect the items inside, and found a sum of around Rp 10 million along with 1 carton of Arrow brand cigarettes and 5 packs of Sampoerna brand cigarettes were missing.

Then, a stone was found in front of the store's door, which is suspected to have been used to damage the lock that was installed on the store's door.

Upon learning of this, Ms. SA immediately went home and informed the reporter's wife. Based on the victim's report, the Criminal Investigation Unit of Sebatik Timur Police conducted an investigation and successfully apprehended the suspect at his home along with evidence consisting of 1 bicycle, 2 piggy banks, and 1 knife believed to have been used to break into the reporter's shop.

Also read: "Online" Gambling Surrounds Indonesia from Cambodia

The perpetrator admitted that they took 2 piggy banks and 8 cigarette packs from the store. After that, the perpetrator left the store. Arriving at their house, the perpetrator opened the piggy banks and counted the money inside which amounted to IDR 5.4 million.

He used the proceeds from the theft to buy a second HP from the Realme brand and a new HP from the Readme brand. The money is also used to play online gambling slots.