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Casino fraud gang sentenced Two former casino cashiers have received prison sentences of 15 years and their accomplice, a known fraudster, 25 years, for stealing R1m (E111,100) from the Emperors Palace Casino in Johannesburg. The cashiers deposited R10,000 (E1,100) on to a gold membership card then changed the amount to R1m by adding more zeros. R800,000 (E88,900) was then withdrawn in cash and the gang retreated to a house in Pretoria to divide it. The money has not been recovered.


AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST


The Ocean Club in the Airport Hotel south of Damascus has a discreet entrance policy


Casino hotel pays for presidential dispute


overstayedwelcome CÔTE D’IVOIRE


One of the less obvious losers in the political debacle affecting the western African republic Côte d’Ivoire is the five-star hotel and casino Golf. Following the long-delayed presidential elections in October and November, in which Alassane Ouattara beat the incumbent Laurent Gbagbo according to the inde- pendent electoral commission and the United Nations, there has been a stand-off between the two men and their supporters. Gbagbo has refused to give up office; both he and Ouattara have taken the oath. Gbagbo retains the support of much of the armed forces and has free range in the country, although his international movements and actions are restricted. Ouattara, however, is holed up in the Golf hotel and casino on the outskirts of the capital Abidjan.


Discreet opening for ban- busting casino in Syria


The Ocean Club, which opened in December under the carefully turned blind eye of the government, has proved an enormously attractive venue for those allowed to enter. Its legal status is dubious, however, and it must face a political fight to stay open.


nicetry SYRIA


With a reputation as one of the harder-line Islamic coun- tries in the Middle East, Syria surprised the world by allow- ing a casino to open on December 25. The Ocean Club is the first casino in the country for more than 30 years, and offers a full range of traditional casino games and slot machines. According to the Annahar


newspaper in neighbouring Lebanon, the casino in a luxury hotel complex near the airport 30km south of the capital Damascus, opened on the evening of Christmas Day “on an experi- mental basis”. It is operated by Khaled Houboubati, a restaurant- owner who also owns the al- Wahda football club. It is the same venue where his father Tawfiq Houboubati operated the Airport Hotel Casino, one of three alongside the Bludan and Orient casinos, which


were closed by the former prime minister


Abdul


Rahman Kleifawi in the 1970s. According to one report, the casino is 60 per cent owned by the Syrian government,


which is


anxious to improve tourism in the country. However, Houboubati is believed to be the owner of the Airport Hotel, which shares its entrance with the casino. The casino is said to have taken around 38m Syrian pounds (E613,500) on its first night. It is open only to non-Syrians, non-resident Syrians and members of Trading Association. There is certainly some


acknowledgement that a restricted casino industry in the country could bring ben- efits. An unnamed member of the Syrian parliament told a local website that gaming could be good for the economy but that he was fearful of it becoming popular: “Gambling should not be made accessible to


16 February 2011 • africa&middleeastnews


the general public but I think some form of regulation should be introduced. The country is losing money as people, especially tourists from Iraq, who want to gamble go to Lebanon.” However, as might be


expected in what is still largely a conservative Muslim country there are strong dissenting voices. Mohammed Habash, a reli- gious scholar and MP, told the Abu-Dhabi National newspaper: “If it is true that there is a casino and gam- bling, then we must struggle against such activity. We have licences for restaurants and nightclubs but there are no licences for casinos or gam- bling. So we consider this to be outside the law. The gov- ernment is responsible for stopping this kind of activity. We are not going to ask for the casino’s legal justifica- tion, we are looking to stop it.”


The matter will certainly be raised in parliament, pos-


sibly on February 15. The present government has attempted to promote a more secular public policy, allowing the sale of alcohol and banning the niqab (face veil) in schools and universi- ties.


According to Dr Sami


Moubayed, a historian and the editor-in-chief of Forward magazine in Syria quoted by the Guardian newspaper in the UK, the government in previous times has always preferred to acknowledge a practice that has long operated under- ground. He said: “Historically, they preferred this industry to operate under the watch- ful eye of the government in a way that they can legiti- mately recoup taxes.” He continued: “I’m sure


the religious establishments will not like it, but personally I abide by the idea that if the government can collect taxes from gambling then it’s better than sending that money offshore.”


With the president-elect and pretty much his entire administration in residence, along with their supporting coalition party New Forces, which arose out the former rebel army in the five-year civil war that ended in 2007, the hotel is worried about the lengthening bill and the casino has not been able to reopen. It is a problem that has been going on for almost eight years.


During a meeting with the new minister of tourism, the CEO of the company that owns the property, Palaces of Cocody (SPDC), Zadi Guédé Michel, said: “In terms of the bill the state owes SPDC the sum of 10bn CFA francs (E15.2m) in respect of accommodation and catering for the New Forces in the Golf Hotel since 2003. No instalments on the bill have ever been paid by the prime minister’s office, which is responsible for it.” The company hasn’t gone entirely without funds,


however, as the president’s office has regularly made pay- ments instead.


The casino was due to re-open in December: with it closed, the company has been unable to supplement its income. Last year the hotel and casino saw its revenues fall by 16bn CFA francs (E24.4m). Its peace dividend has been poor, with only 29 per cent occupancy against the 42 per cent predicted. The company’s other properties and projects have also suffered. Zadi has asked for significant recompense for the gov-


ernment, including emergency grants to repair the damage done while the company’s properties have been expropriated.


The Golf hotel and casino near Côte d’Ivoire’s capital Abidjan, the temporary


home of President Ouattara


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