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Associated
Press, 18 Jun 04
Singaporeans invited to air views on casino
plan as debate heats up
The Singapore government took the unusual step Friday of appealing
for residents' comments on whether the city-state should open its
first casino.
The idea was floated in March, and has triggered an outpouring of
comments about the merits of such a scheme, which detractors fear
could spark a rise in vice and money laundering.
Citizens who wanted to comment were invited Friday to write, fax or
e-mail the ministry of trade and industry, Lim Chuen Ni, spokeswoman
for the ministry said in a letter to the Straits Times.
While the government often consults interest groups or companies on
proposed changes in public policy, it is rare to invite regular citizens
to offer an opinion.
The government -- which been run by the People's Action Party since
independence in 1965 -- has a long-standing reputation for its elitist
style, in which voters are often told what is good for them.
Ministers have yet to decide themselves whether to back the casino,
which would form the centerpiece of a larger resort, possibly on Sentosa,
a holiday island off Singapore's southern coast.
The project is now being studied, and civil servants have been dispatched
to study how the roulette wheels work and cards are dealt in casinos
in Las Vegas and Macau, China.
A final decision is expected by the end of the year. |
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