By Omar Bah
The National Assembly Member for Serekunda, Musa Cham, has formally written to Interior Minister Abdoulie Sanyang over what he described as a dangerous and accelerating rise in roadside and street gambling across urban Gambia.
In the letter, shared with The Standard, Honourable Cham called for immediate, coordinated enforcement to restore public order, protect minors and clarify the legal limits of permits issued to gambling operators.
“Honourable Minister, I write with deep concern about the proliferation of open-air gambling activities—on pavements, at market entrances, and at busy junctions—now taking place with impunity in many towns and cities,” Cham stated.
“These operations obstruct lawful movement and commerce, attract disorderly crowds and expose schoolcchildren and young women to a predatory vice. The situation is deteriorating rapidly, and visible enforcement remains weak or absent.”
Cham acknowledged that some gambling operators claim to be registered with local councils and, in some cases, even claiming to hold police-issued permits.
He argued that such permissions, where they exist, do not confer a right to occupy public streets or run gambling tables in ways that disrupt public order, offend communal norms, and contravene the intent of current public-order and child-protection regulations.
“Registration by a council or a permit from the police cannot be construed as a blanket authorisation to take over public spaces,” he writes.
He added: “Public streets are for safe movement and legitimate commerce. Open gambling in public violates that principle and undermines the values of discipline, hard work, and responsibility that are essential to national development. It is both socially harmful and, when conducted in public spaces, unlawful under existing regulatory intent.”
Honourable Cham said minors are being drawn into gambling circles, normalising unlawful behaviour and fueling truancy, indiscipline, and the illusion that wealth is earned without honest work, crowding around gambling tables obstructs pedestrians, traders, increases noise and conflict, and creates hotspots for petty crime and exploitation.
Cham added that communities report rising tensions and moral decay, with parents and teachers struggling to counter the lure of quick money and the debt traps that follow.
He urges the Interior Ministry to take decisive, coordinated action to immediately direct the Gambia Police Force to clear gambling tables from public streets, markets, and junctions; seize equipment; and issue citations or arrests where required under applicable public-order provisions.
“I urge you to launch an urgent review of any permits issued to gambling operators, formally clarify the scope and limits of such permits, and revoke permissions that authorise or enable public-space gambling, and issue a directive to local councils to cease granting or tolerating permits that allow operations in open public spaces, and require that any licensed gambling be conducted only in enclosed, compliant venues away from schools, health facilities, and major market thoroughfares.”
He urged the Interior Minister to enforce strict age checks, signage, and operating standards for licensed venues; establish penalties for non-compliance and require regular reporting to the Ministry and the Police on adherence.
“Coordinate with schools, youth groups, and religious leaders to sensitise communities on the risks of gambling; set up a public hotline to report illegal street gambling; and prioritise patrols at school closing hours and market peak times.”
Cham further recommends a time-bound enforcement plan with weekly hotspot closures, equipment seizures, citations issued, and minors intercepted and referred to guardians or social services.
He calls for joint operations between the Police and council inspectors, backed by clear consequences for officials who condone unlawful street operations.
“Honourable Minister, the state must be unambiguous: gambling cannot colonise our streets,” Cham argued. “Where the law allows regulated gaming, it must be kept indoors, away from minors, and under strict compliance principles. Where operators defy these principles, enforcement must be swift, firm, and consistent.”
The Serekunda NAM also stressed that enforcement should be paired with constructive alternatives: expanding youth recreation programs, vocational training, and small enterprise support to provide meaningful pathways away from gambling. He proposed a stakeholder meeting between the Interior Ministry, councils, Police, education authorities, and community leaders to align on enforcement protocols and social safeguards.
