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Gambling: Politically unwise (Part 2)
Gambling is also bad political policy. Solely in terms of its effects on society and government, a law that permits gambling is hard to justify, and a law that sponsors or promotes gambling is a sure loser.
It should not be surprising that many of the public policy arguments against gambling are mirror images of the moral and religious considerations reviewed last week. The moral codes of religion are rooted in our Creator’s teachings of how his children should live to be happy, prosperous, and at peace. A religious and moral person is generally a good neighbour and a good citizen. The encouragement of moral behaviour by citizens is generally good public policy.
Columnist George F. Will explained it this way:“Gambling is debased speculation, a lust for sudden wealth that is not connected with the process of making society more productive of goods and services. Government support of gambling gives a legitimsing imprimatur to the pursuit of wealth without work.”In the words of Former Governor of Florida Bob Graham, “What the lottery says about success is the wrong message. What it says is that you don’t have to work hard, you don’t have to try to improve yourself. All you have to do is just take your roll of the dice.”
A Catholic priest, Monsignor Joseph Dunne, deplores what the lottery teaches children: “Why should they get an education when with a little bit of luck they can win a bundle of money for life? That’s what lotteries are doing to our youth.”The philosophy of something for nothing or something for far less than it is worth is at the root of a multitude of crimes: theft, robbery, looting, embezzlement, fraud, and many other kinds of plunder. By nourishing and legitimating that philosophy, gambling is a threat to the prosperity and peace of any nation.
Gambling is especially wicked when it is administered by government or when government relies on it as a substantial source of public revenue. In times when a government’s appetite for taxes seems insatiable, government officials who depend on gambling to finance a share of the public budget have a strong temptation to promote gambling and to protect it from opposition.
You can’t run a successful lottery by telling the whole truth. You need hard-sell promotion, often vague and misleading about the odds and the prizes. That enterprise of parting the gullible from his hard earn money is questionable enough in the free marketplace; it’s no business for a nation or government whose purpose is to serve and protect the people.
As a Newsweek business section writer noted: “The strongest case against lotteries may simply be that they are inefficient.”Most methods of taxation cost only one to two cents to bring in each dollar of revenue. In contrast, between 60 and 75 cents of every dollar spent on a lottery ticket goes to operating expenses and prizes.
Lottery is the worst form of taxation ever invented when operated by the government. This is because the poor pay a higher proportion of their income than the rich. Economists describe this kind of tax as highly regressive. Writing in the National Tax Journal,one economist stated that most forms of gambling, including lotteries and numbers games, turn out to be “two to three times more regressive than sales taxes.”
An official with a firm that markets lottery products told a trade audience that the typical player of a numbers game is a labourer or service worker who is male with less than a high school education. Scholarly studies confirm that lotteries draw their revenues from the poor and disadvantaged.
A national lottery encourages many non-gamblers to take up gambling. Its goal, as explained by an official of the Public Gaming Research Institute, “is to get lots of people to play a little bit.” That is what happens. Like a virus, official sponsorship spreads gambling like an epidemic.
Advocates of legalised gambling argue that their games will eliminate illegal gambling, but there is no evidence that this has occurred. Instead, legalised gambling wins new participants, which expands the market and the potential revenues of illegal gambling. Just by example see the number of young people flocking betting dens all day of the week take a chance on sport betting.
The only beneficiaries of a national lottery are the businesses that sell the specialised products and services used in lotteries. Those businesses are behind the campaigns to adopt them. National sponsored lotteries are a good news/bad news proposition. The good news is for a handful of businesses that are sure to profit by it, and for professional gamblers and the crime syndicate that will benefit from having their most profitable enterprise promoted and legitimised by the state. It is also good news for a tiny number of winners who cannot be predicted in advance but who are sure to be fewer than one in a thousand of those who participate.
The bad news is for the hundreds of thousands of losers and for the citizens at large. As a method of raising revenue to support any worthy object, a national lottery is the most unfair and expensive form of taxation, and its victims require increased state expenditures for social welfare and law enforcement. In short, the national lottery is costly, ineffective, and unfair.
I conclude this discussion of public policy arguments against gambling with several moral objections. Law is concerned about morality, and there are serious legal-moral objections to lotteries and gambling. I quote five of these objections from a publication of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Christian Life Commission:
“It is a moral issue when the state decides to derive income from an activity which is a highly regressive form of taxation that affects poor people more extensively than affluent people. It is a moral issue when a state decides not only to tolerate gambling but to get in the business of planning games, engaging in promotional activities … and targeting its citizens through extensive marketing analyses in the hopes of creating new gamblers.
“It is a moral issue when a state adopts a form of gambling which in all probability will increase the extent and the amount of illegal gambling. It is a moral issue when a state adopts a form of gambling that will draw off large amounts of money, especially from the poor people for whom the state supposedly has a responsibility to provide assistance.
“It is a moral issue when a state engages in naive projections and adopts financial planning that amounts to putting a shoddy patch on a state’s long-term financial problems.”
To summarise: that governments would tolerate gambling is regrettable; that governments would promote gambling is reprehensible.So what should we do about gambling a people? We should not participate in any way, and should encourage others, especially our family members, not to participate.
If as Christians, Moslems and high minded people in the society members do not oppose immoral and pernicious practices, who will? If not now, when? We can make a difference! May God help us to do so.
By Samuel Enos Eghan
Local mattress manufacturers have raised serious concerns over the influx of substandard mattresses, warning that these products pose significant health risks to consumers and threaten the sustainability of Ghana’s mattress industry.
At a press briefing held in Kumasi on Tuesday, manufacturers accused unregistered foreign entities, particularly Chinese firms, of flooding the market with cheap mattresses made from polystyrene.
Mr Yaw Ampem Darko, a spokesperson for the local manufacturers, warned that prolonged use of substandard mattresses, especially those made with polystyrene, could result in chronic back pain, musculoskeletal disorders, poor posture, and diminished sleep quality.
These health implications, they stressed, were not always immediately evident but accumulate over time, especially among vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly.
This material, typically used for packaging, is considered unsuitable and unsafe for bedding.
According to industry leaders, these sub-standard products have been circulating for at least five years, gaining traction among unsuspecting consumers due to their unusually low prices.
“These mattresses are being sold at suspiciously low prices, luring unsuspecting consumers who are unaware of the health dangers.”
“We are not just protecting our businesses; we are protecting Ghanaian lives. The government must act swiftly to stem this tide before more citizens fall victim to these dangerous products,” Mr Yaw Ampem Darko stated.
The Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) has acknowledged the issue and, in response, announced a nationwide enforcement campaign aimed at clamping down on the production, distribution, and sale of substandard mattresses.
The campaign, which was scheduled to take effect from September 30, 2025, was empowered by the GSA Act, 2022 (Act 1078), which authorises the Authority to seize and seal non-compliant products and impose sanctions on offenders.
In a statement signed by the Director General of the GSA, Professor George Agyei, the authority cited Sections 29 and 43 of the Act, reiterating that all mattresses sold in Ghana must meet established national standards or face confiscation.
The statement further emphasised that mattresses failing to meet these standards not only compromise sleep quality but also contribute to long-term health complications, including spinal and neck pain.
Despite the GSA’s commitment, manufacturers have expressed frustration over delays in implementation and called for stronger enforcement mechanisms.
They urged the GSA to work in close collaboration with the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and national law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute violators of Ghana’s quality standards.
Manufacturers are also appealing to consumers to remain vigilant and prioritise their health by verifying that any mattress they purchase bears the GSA certification mark.
Moreover, they caution the public against purchasing suspiciously cheap mattresses that lack proper labelling or identifiable branding, as these were often indicators of substandard or counterfeit products.
As the official enforcement deadline had expired with no show, the local producers insisted that much more than business interests were at stake.
They argued that without swift and sustained action, the health and safety of Ghanaian consumers would continue to be compromised.
“Public awareness, strict enforcement, and collaboration among regulatory bodies are essential if we are to protect the integrity of the local industry and the wellbeing of the Ghanaian people,” Mr Darko indicated.
From Kingsley E. Hope, Kumasi
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The Founder of the Raissa Child Protection Initiative, Ms Raissa Sambou, has urged authorities to impose severe punishment on individuals, including teachers and guardians, who sexually abuse young girls.
Speaking in an interview to mark this year’s International Day of the Girl Child (October 11), Ms Sambou condemned the increasing cases of sexual exploitation involving minors, describing such acts as “heartless, criminal, and a total betrayal of trust.”
She noted that those entrusted with the care and education of children must not be the same people who violate them, stressing that “anyone found guilty of abusing a girl child must face the full rigours of the law without leniency.”
The International Day of the Girl Child is observed annually to promote the rights of girls, empower them to reach their full potential, and draw attention to the challenges they face worldwide.
Ms Sambou lamented that poverty continues to push many young girls into vulnerable situations, exposing them to exploitation.
She expressed concern that some headmasters, teachers, and community members who should protect girls rather take advantage of them.
“This must stop immediately. The safety of every girl must never be compromised,” she said, urging the public to report all forms of abuse to the appropriate authorities and called for swift action by law enforcement agencies against perpetrators.
Addressing girls directly, Ms Sambou encouraged them to take their education seriously and to believe in their potential.
“It is possible to be young and responsible. Your future is bright, protect it, believe in it, and never let anyone dim your light,” she advised.
She further urged girls to choose their friends wisely, stay disciplined, and speak up if anyone makes sexual advances toward them.
Ms Sambou concluded with a rallying call for collective action, saying “speak up, protect them, and empower them. Together, we can end the sexual exploitation of girls.”
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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