YOURSAY 'All that they care for between now and the Umno elections is getting their names and faces on the front-page of Utusan.'

Ali Rustam wants Genting casino closed

CiViC: Going by former Malacca CM Mohd Ali Rustam's logic, casinos should be closed down, alcohol, cigarettes and Magnum/Toto/Damacai be banned.

And all this will only encourage illegal ones to operate that pays zero taxes and we can have 100 percent confidence that our authorities will not be able to control them.

Ali Rustam, what a statement for you to make in saying Genting Group contributes nothing to the country's economy. Do you know how much taxes Genting pays?

And Malacca gets nothing from federal government? Do you know how much in tourism revenue, directly and indirectly?

Gigatt: I absolutely support the closing of casinos, any casino, not just Genting. We cannot justify having casinos by saying government can tax them. It is still the money of the people. We have seen too many broken families.

Paul Warren: Well, this is about getting your name and face in the media. Preferably on the front page. Genting just joins the likes of Christians and other enemies of Islam for those vying for positions in the Umno elections.

It's not that they want what they are asking. It is not that Christians are their enemies. It is not that they care if ‘Allah' is being used by Christians.

All that they care for between now and the Umno elections is getting their names and faces on the front-page of Utusan Malaysia and other papers.

Rick Teo: Does Rustam know that Genting contributed nearly RM190 million to Umno coffers in the recent general election?

Has he any idea how much Genting pays in taxes to the government? Genting's annual profits is more than RM1 billion. At the tax rate of 25%, the company contributes RM250 million in taxes.

‘Cakap tak guna otak'. No wonder he lost in the contest for the Bukit Katil parliamentary seat in the last election and he will definitely lose in the coming Umno election.

Ontoi: Genting gave a very large sum of money to Umno which was unaccounted for before GE13. May be Mohd Ali did not get his share, thus he lost in GE13.

Ruhaizan Muhd Fikri: The Chinese's craze for money has had a detrimental effect on our social fabric. They have very little decency, which is slowly rubbing onto the other races.

Truthseeker: Ruhaizan, please don't blame the Chinese who work hard for their money. Corruption and money has nothing to do with race or religion. It is just human greed.

Lim Chong Keong: Show some statistics on how Genting is causing social problems and investigate the complaints before making such a drastic call.

Such calls will be misconstrued by foreign and local investors into thinking that we are all made up of Taliban. Mohd Ali never thinks of the consequences of his actions and words.

Secondly, he is against Genting but wants a share of their profits. What a hypocrite. And when he does not get a share of their hard-earned profits, he wants to close them down.

Sixth Sense: Only when he lost his position, he realised that Genting Highlands casino contributed zero to Malacca's economy. What did he do about it when he was Malacca CM?

Let see what the new CM of Malacca has to say about this. If he remains silent, it means he disagrees with the former CM.

Jaguh: I thought Genting is in Pahang, not Malacca. What has Malacca got to do with it? Social ills related to gambling cannot be affecting Muslims as they are not allowed to gamble. Only non-Muslims are allowed.

And are the non-Muslims the social ills of this country? Nope. He should look deeper into his own community.

Bianca Lee: Does Ali Rustam have any grey matter left? To say that Genting is all about casino is a gross understatement.

After being in existence for so long not just as a casino but a great family holiday spot now catering to many tourists, Genting has raked in enough money to bury Ali Rustam (and many more ministers) alive. Not to mention the late Lim Goh Tong who is a well-known philanthropist.

Born Free: If Mohd Ali's suggestion to close down the Genting casino can solve social problems and crimes, then motorbikes which are the major cause of motor accidents death and nuisance (mat rempit) should be ban.

Closing down Genting casino will seriously deprive contributions to our Finance Ministry's coffers. These ‘haram' money had led to building of many projects which everybody is enjoying.

Previously there were many calls to close the Genting casino but when ‘contributions' were made, it died a natural death. It is an open secret these unscrupulous leaders use these methods to raise personal fund.

Abasir: Nazri should send his cigar-chomping Nedim to sort out Mohd Ali. I can just imagine a convoy of black hummers pulling up in front of his house and balaclava-clad men piling out followed by Nedim with a Havana cigar in his mouth saying, "We've come to shut you down, bro."

MissPandora: My gardener says to me, "Maaf kak, nak balik, nak pergi KTM." I asked him, "Balik kampung ke?" He answered, "Oh, tak. Nak beli Kuda, Toto, Magnum."

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