I am intrigued by the report that a politician is said to have thrown a bag containing RM1 million back to a gambling den boss.

This was after he had received many phone calls from gambling den bosses allegedly trying to bribe him, including offers of monthly payments with “a very shocking figure”.

I have no idea how gambling den bosses operate but would be quite surprised if this is their modus operandi.

I had always thought they operate behind the scenes and rely on trusted lieutenants to carry out the tasks and with a chain of command in place.

Should I receive a call from a stranger, I would not be able to verify straightaway whether the person is who he claims to be.

However, I would be able to know for sure who a caller is if I were familiar with his voice, and a gambling den boss if I had known of his identity earlier.

Should I bump into him and was offered a bag of money, I will not touch the bag if I were not interested in the money.

I will certainly not spend time counting the money. If I had counted that it was indeed RM1 million, throwing the bag to the gambling den boss would imply that the bribe was too little.

If a gambling boss can offer a politician RM1 million for not doing anything, then many people who could cause trouble to his illegal business would also ask to be paid.

If illegal gambling dens can rake in such huge sums of money, then many others would have joined in, as such a business is too lucrative to ignore, albeit illegal.

This is unlikely to be the case as Malaysians have easy access to gambling. Apart from the safety and comfort in a licensed casino, the three major lottery companies accept bets in every city and town across the country.

Overseas online gambling sites can also be accessed from the privacy of one’s own home, with payments and winnings through direct bank transfers.

As such, I find the report strange. But it may well be true as fact is often stranger than fiction.