{"id":20743,"date":"2026-03-19T14:28:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T17:28:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/?p=20743"},"modified":"2026-04-19T07:33:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T10:33:18","slug":"eswatini-investigates-the-george-hotel-over-alleged-unauthorised-gaming-equipment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/eswatini-investigates-the-george-hotel-over-alleged-unauthorised-gaming-equipment","title":{"rendered":"Eswatini investigates The George Hotel over alleged unauthorised gaming equipment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The machines were imported and installed by Macau Investments (PTY) LTD, a company that is not the licensed operator of the premises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Eswatini.- Eswatini authorities have launched an investigation into alleged illegal gambling activities at The George Hotel <\/strong>in Manzini, <\/strong>following the discovery of 39 gaming machines<\/strong> believed to have been operating without approval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ministry of Tourism and Environmental Affairs disclosed the development in submissions to a parliamentary portfolio committee during its recent budget review. According to the Ministry, the machines were imported and installed by Macau Investments (PTY) LTD<\/strong>, a company that is not the licensed operator of the premises. This arrangement is in breach of provisions of the country\u2019s Gaming<\/strong> Control Act of 2022<\/strong>, which regulates the ownership and operation of gambling equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the law, only duly licensed operators are permitted to own, install and operate gambling equipment. The Eswatini Revenue Service initially seized the machines before placing them under embargo. Although the equipment remains on-site, it is not permitted for use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ministry stated that while the hotel holds a provisional licence from the Gaming Board, the involvement of a third-party importer triggered compliance concerns. Lawmakers were urged to conduct an on-site inspection to verify the status of the casino operations, confirm enforcement of the embargo and establish the role of Macau Investments. A report is expected within 14 days<\/strong> after parliamentary adoption of the committee\u2019s findings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case falls within broader concerns over rising illegal gambling activity in the country. Recent investigations are linked to a separate operation at Castle Hotel, where more than 80 foreign nationals were arrested for allegedly running an illegal gambling and fraud network.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\t\tSee also:<\/span><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tSee also:<\/span> Eswatini police detain 88 foreign nationals over illegal online gambling operation<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The machines were imported and installed by Macau Investments (PTY) LTD, a company that is not the licensed operator of the premises.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2395,"featured_media":11419,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"Eswatini authorities are investigating alleged illegal gambling at The George Hotel in Manzini, where 39 gaming machines were found operating without proper licensing, in breach of the Gaming Control Act of 2022. The machines were imported and installed by Macau Investments (PTY) LTD, an unlicensed third party, raising significant regulatory compliance concerns. This incident is part of a broader crackdown on illicit gambling activities within the country.","focusai_entities":"Macau Investments (PTY) LTD, The George Hotel, Ministry of Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Eswatini Revenue Service, Gaming Board, Parliament, Castle Hotel","focusai_location":"Eswatini, Manzini","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.9), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (1.0), operator_casino (0.9), payments_fraud_aml (0.7), investor_analyst (0.8), supplier_vendor (0.8), journalist_researcher (1.0)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Penalties for Act Breach?","query":"What are the specific penalties and enforcement actions stipulated under Eswatini's Gaming Control Act of 2022 for breaches related to unlicensed equipment ownership and operation?"},{"label":"Hotel License Impact?","query":"How will this investigation and the findings of the parliamentary committee impact the provisional license status of The George Hotel and its future operational viability?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[60023,60011],"tags":[73],"class_list":["post-20743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-legal-news","category-south-africa","tag-illegal-gambling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2395"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20743"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20743\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20834,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20743\/revisions\/20834"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}