Gaming regulator privatizes control and auditing of operations under legal pretence
From the moment that gaming regulator CONAJZAR – Comisión Nacional de Juegos de Azar – privatized the management of slot machine control in Paraguay, a series of irregularities have been carried out in the local industry, reports local daily ABC Color in its June 23rd edition. It added that a group of slot machine operators had “denounced the private firm iCrop S.A., which benefits at their expense with millions in profits through a contract granted by the Conajzar, so they are asking for intervention from government authorities.”
Faced with such abuses, gaming sector workers gathered in front of the Conajzar headquarters to protest against the measures taken by the Paraguayan gambling regulator, which has passed on regulating responsibilities by privatizing regulatory work in favour of Brazilian company, iCrop.
ABC Color reports: “In conversation with those affected, everyone agreed that this is a dodgy business negotiated by Conajzar under the pretence of regularizing gambling.”
Ruben Duarte, one of the slot machines operators, said: “Since this year employees of the company (iCrop) have demanded that we pay G.300,000 per machine and if we do not, they confiscate the machine.” The strange thing about the case, according to Duarte, is that the company authorized by Conajzar is meddling in work “that is done by the Municipalities, with a rate of G.120,000 for each machine.
Delia Martinez, another slot operator, questioned the reason for Conajzar to delegate a private company for collection of all their profits, adding: “What it is, is that we work for them and if we do not pay them, they take my machines and on top of that they can operate my machines because they are also operators. That is to say, they are judge and jury in this set up, as they have established the rules for plain day light robbery”.
