KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail on Sunday (June 18) said it is up to law enforcement agencies to decide whether the identity of politicians linked to illegal online gambling syndicates should be revealed.
Mr Saifuddin said it is up to the police and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to decide based on their professional evaluation.
“Both agencies have a very comprehensive data information on who (is) behind the players and who (is) the mastermind.
“That was how they managed to establish the element of political patronage. As mentioned by MACC and the Inspector General of Police, there is a need for both law enforcement agencies to exchange information.
“I leave it to them to decide based on their professional evaluation (whether to disclose the identity of politicians involved),” he told reporters after attending the Home Ministry’s Madani programme in Sungai Petani on Sunday.
Mr Saifuddin said online gambling activities in the country could be worth billions of ringgit on a monthly basis.
“There are many forms of illegal online gambling. For 4D online gambling alone, they (can rake in) between RM200 million (S$58 million) to RM250 million per week. That is just one type of online gambling. They are many other forms of online gambling out there.
“I recently disclosed that almost 100 websites operating online involve gambling activity. Based on the size, the volume is enormous and (the syndicates) are keeping their profits in the form of cryptocurrency. They are very advanced,” he said.
On Thursday, Mr Saifuddin told Malaysia’s Lower House parliament that political patronage had undermined the political will and determination to effectively tackle the issue of illegal gambling in the country. NEW STRAITS TIMES