A shortsighted populist policy!

Starting 1st January 2023, the State of Kedah in Malaysia closed all their gaming outlets. Nobody in the state could place their bets on their lucky numbers in 4D, Toto, or DaMaiCai or buy lottery tickets anymore.

What they need to comprehend is that Man is very innovative when it comes to beating the system. I remember a neighbour during my childhood who ran a clandestine betting business. After taking all the bets for the day, he would sneak the counterfoils above the electricity switchboard that served the whole floor of the flat. If he gets caught, the police cannot put his involvement in it.

Again during my childhood, as the European-run estates came to a grinding halt, the estate-managed spirit shops also closed. Labourers, who by then were addicted to the bottle, got their fix from bootleg booze. They had to settle for locally brewed concoctions because they were out of jobs, and legal liquor cost too much. Methanol poisoning caused blindness to many and cost their lives to some.

Lessons from the American 1920s Prohibition Law are worth revisiting. During the roaring 20s, easy access to alcohol was determined to be the root of most social ills. The frequent wild parties that led to deaths, the increase in alcoholism and the frequent absence from work as mass production was in high gear were blamed on booze.

The Churches, Women Empowerment groups and even Ku Klax Klan were all for the Volstead Law, which prohibited the production, transportation, sales and importation of alcoholic beverages except for ceremonial wines and liquor for private (the affluent) consumption.

As days went on, supporters of Prohibition decreased as they were unhappy with what they saw. There was widespread thuggery, shootings and racketeering. The police force had never seen such amounts of bribery. The number of outlets, called speakeasies, illegal, of course, paradoxically increased during Prohibition. The noble intention to curb access to alcohol actually backfired, with the government of the day getting no revenue from its sales.

Entrepreneurs became creative. The so-called ‘bathtub gin’ became a thing when water from the bathtub tap was added to the premixed powder to produce gin. Cakes with fermented grapes were sold past the expiry date to achieve the desired effect. And methanol poisoning reared its ugly head too.

Rather than banning something outright, the more sensible thing is legislating all these so-called sinful activities, booze, cigarettes, gambling and even the flesh trade. Outlawing them is akin to burying one’s head under the sand. The rest of the world will just go on, business as usual. At least you can go on with life, convincing yourselves that, at least in the afterlife, all will be hunky dory to eternity.

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