Gambling program proposed in Saipan

A lawmaker proposed a responsible gambling program for the Saipan poker market.

Saipan.- Representative Angel Demapan has introduced the idea of implementing a gambling program to be applied to the poker industry. As revealed by Marianas Variety, the comment was made during the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation session.

The session concluded with members rejecting a bill that would’ve allowed the extension of the deadline to move poker arcades out of residential places for two years. Demapan said that the people who need a responsible gambling program are not casino high rollers but those in the poker industry. “It’s not too late to talk about [additional] regulations for the poker industry,” he added.

“These are the things that we need to consider. We can provide a safer community if we implement a responsible gambling program,” Demapan said. Earlier this month, the government of Saipan, granted the operating license to the new Imperial Pacific casino. The touristic and gaming venue would be opened soon, now that the company achieved the complete permissions by the Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC).