I'm sure this text will generate a good debate. And the reason is obvious: the MORAL dispute around this issue already makes Brazil shiver on one side and a lot of euphoria on the other. But let's be clear, times have changed. Brazil deserves to advance.
And we didn't change just by the conception of the world of the Z and Alpha generations, no. We change because we have to find new money for new problems. With municipalities, states and the federal government literally broken, either by lack of management, or by corruption or evasion, old ills such as misery, lack of resources for health and education do not stop growing. The change in society's profile brings us other challenges, ranging from new ways of investing in public security to even forms of private participation in public investments or projects.
And there is simply no government money to fund these new accounts. You can't do that by betting on old money. And that's where the characters in our title come in. For decades, gaming was criminalized in Brazil when played outside the state’s environment. The solution was to “legalize” this by placing this issue under the responsibility of federal banks, such as Caixa Econômica Federal or lottery companies, for example. And we need to talk more about it.
In the case of gaming, the great truth is that the government has always been incapable of creating mechanisms of control and collection to minimally control the sector. In addition, gaming as the jogo do bicho served to move gangs and drug traffic throughout the country, especially in Rio de Janeiro and famously during the Carioca Carnival. In São Paulo, bingos and slot machines also fueled crime. With its ban, the issue was thrown into limbo and the debate has always divided society, also on account of cases of addiction and why not a moral-religious issue.
But now friends, we are in the 21st century. It is absolutely incomprehensible for the state (in this case Congress) not to touch this wound. The country needs to generate jobs and new money to grow. Cities such as Rio de Janeiro, Vitória, Recife, Maceió and Florianópolis, among other coastal cities, could benefit from their beauties, including to attract tourists and generate movement to the service area, predominant in these places and which has been staggering, especially in Rio de Janeiro, after the re-discussion of the sharing of oil money.
Other places like Tocantins could specialize in this type of activity, creating an entire ecosystem and industry dedicated to it. Eco Resorts could appear more frequently in the North region, leading to more development and quality of life for the Amazonians. The possibilities are many. Billions of reais and dollars that could flood our economy. It remains to be seen whether parliament will have the courage to decide, understanding that morals, especially religious ones, will not be degraded by this approval. Moral degradation is much more caused by the lack of employment, income and food. And let it be clear. The role of the State is to generate opportunities and let the market develop, always within the legal framework, of course.
And here lies the other problem to be solved. Corruption, the way of doing business involving politicians as hidden partners is a cancer for Brazil. If we do it right, mirroring the most modern legislation in the world, the best examples, we will explode in attracting foreign capital and business. And we will be able to develop entire chains of services and products, as already exists in Macau, Las Vegas, Taipei, Singapore and Dubai.
I remind the avengers of conservative morals, that the great conservative nations of the world have free casinos, like Israel, the United Kingdom and Japan for example. We are no longer in the 1980s. We have clear conditions to move forward at this moment in history. Another big business that Brazil loses billions of reais is betting sites and online gaming. Due to the delay in our legislation, we see Brazilians' money moving fortunes on sites located abroad, where there is legal security for this type of business.
Enough delay. It is not the government that generates jobs and income. It's the private sector. The government should only induce and create conditions for the private sector to make it happen. Release gaming.
Guto Ferreira
Partner-owner of Solomon's Brain, Political-Economic Analyst with a professional background that includes ABDI (Brazilian Agency for Industrial Development) and the City of Sao Paulo.
