Singapore is widely expected to announce today it will go ahead with the city-state's first casino project as it prepares for fiercer competition in the booming travel industry.
Analysts said all signals point to the government giving the green light as Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lee Hsien Loong (李顯龍) addresses parliament to announce the cabinet's decision after months of emotional debate.
"It's pretty clear that they're going to go ahead. I think the green light is almost a certainty," said Seah Chiang Nee, the editor of the political website www.littlespeck.com, told reporters.
The casino issue has sparked a rare and highly-charged public debate in Singapore, where citizens traditionally toe the government line, with opponents waging a robust campaign.
Nearly 30,000 signatures have been gathered in an online petition against the casino in addition to thousands of online postings. Hundreds of letters supporting or opposing the casino have appeared in newspaper forum pages.
Opponents have mostly warned about the social costs, such as families being ruined as well as criminality.
The government had highlighted the casino's economic benefits, while assuring citizens that enough safeguards would be put in place to contain any social fallout.
Chia Teck Leng, a former casino addict now serving a 42-year jail term for defrauding banks of S$117 million (US$73 million) to cover gambling debts, wrote a commentary from prison supporting curbs against excessive punting.
To protect ordinary Singaporeans, he said a casino should be run like a private club, with a high entrance fee and VIP halls open only to foreigners. It should also be located in Sentosa, a resort island linked by a causeway to the city.
"The current group of Singaporean gamblers who could afford to regularly gamble overseas would not find this fee unreasonable or prohibitive," he said, suggesting a fee of S$10,000.
Casino operating hours should be limited in sections open to locals and they must be subject to gambling limits per table to stem their losses, he added in the commentary which was published in local newspapers Saturday.
Analysts have said the project -- which is envisioned to be part of a sprawling integrated resort and entertainment complex -- could contribute up to US$1.5 billion in revenues annually to the economy.
The entire complex will be one of the country's biggest projects in years. The government said it will play a key role in boosting tourism by enhancing the island's attractiveness as a travel destination.
The government has received at least 19 bids from some of the world's biggest gaming companies, including Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts, US gaming giant Harrah's Entertainment and Tabcorp of Australia to build the casino.
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