New Bill Seeks To Regulate Use Of Mobile Phones In Gambling
[IMAGE/ COURTESY]
Parliament is seeking new methods of regulating gambling habits in the country through a new bill that will limit the use of mobile phones in gambling activities.
The Gaming Bill 2019 targets the online gaming industry, which has gobbled up most of the youth population.
The bill, sponsored by Sports, Culture and Tourism committee, seeks to repeal the Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act of 1966 and is due for its first reading at the National Assembly next week.
Read: What You Need To Know About Gambling Disorders
“The Bill seeks to…restrict use of telecommunication platforms as media for gambling in Kenya,” said the chair of the National Assembly’s Sports, Culture and Tourism committee, Victor Munyaka, at a media briefing yesterday.
According to surveying platform Geopoll, 76 percent of Kenyan youths engage in betting, the largest in Africa.
Averagely, they spend Ksh5,000 per month to bet.
Read: CS Fred Matiang’i To Suspend Betting Companies’ Licences Starting July 1
The government has been trying to regulate betting companies, that owe the government at least Ksh26 billion in tax arrears. However, the current laws are termed as outdated considering the evolution of technology.
Recently, the government suffered a blow after the court suspended a directive by the betting board which sought to ban outdoor and social media advertising of gambling products.
In a letter by the board’s acting director, Liti Wambua, betting, lottery firms were prohibited from airing adverts between 6 am and 10 pm. Celebrities were also disallowed from endorsing the products.
Read: Betting Board Bans Social Media Gambling Adverts, Endorsements From Celebrities
However, the High Court declared the directive unconstitutional.
According to Justice John Mativo, the ban was tainted with illegality and unreasonableness and procedural impropriety.
The decision followed a case filed by the Outdoor Advertising Association of Kenya.
Read: Betting Board Bans Social Media Gambling Adverts, Endorsements From Celebrities
“I hold that the applicant has satisfied the conditions for granting the orders sought,” Justice Mativo ruled.
Further, the court declared null and void a directive that any form of advertisements be approved and contain a warning message about the consequences of gambling including its addiction.
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