Sports gambling good for Malaysia, says Vincent Tan

Sunday, 06 June 2010

(AFP) - Legalising sports betting in Malaysia will generate over RM3 billion a year for government coffers, the magnate leading the controversial project said in remarks published Sunday.

The government in May granted a sports betting licence to Ascot Sports, a company controlled by influential tycoon Vincent Tan, in a bid to boost tax revenue, but the move has run into stiff opposition.

"By legalising sports betting... the government could earn annual revenue of up to RM3 billion ringgit through taxes," Tan was quoted as saying by the New Sunday Times newspaper.

"Why are some politicians so against this," he added.

Muslim groups have denounced gambling and three opposition controlled states have imposed a ban on legalised sports betting which they fear could cause debt problems for punters and other social woes...

Comment:Allah says in the Qur'an:

They ask thee concerning wine and gambling. Say in them there is great sin and some benefit for men. The sin is greater than the benefit.

(Surah al-Baqarah 219)

Abu Hurayrah narrates that the prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) forbade transaction determined by Hasah and Gharrar. (Muslim)

Hasah is a transaction contracted on chance. Hasah linguistically means pebble or small stone. An example of hasah is when a person says to a customer �I will sell you the items on which your pebbles fall� it is clear that the transaction is based on an unknown outcome.

Tafsir Uthmani V.1 pg 119

The risk involved in gambling is outside the control of players, therefore the result of the outcome is a matter of chance. The prohibition of gambling is regardless of the probability of the outcome. The probability of a head or tale when a coin is tossed is 1/2; where as the probability of picking 7 numbered balls out of 50 33232 billion 930 million 569 thousand and 600! (1/33232930569600). Since both these examples are based on chance the 'odds' probability on the outcome whether high or low is irrelevant.

Gharar is defined as an exchange in which there is an element of 'deception' through the ignorance of the goods or price.

Gambling in a more limited sense it means an effort to gain something of value by risking the loss of something of value as a matter of chance. (Colliers Encyclopaedia V.10 pg 561)