This likely won’t mean storming into Doug Ford’s office and busting up his furniture. Lessons have learned … like sharing gaming profits.
First, though, a recent history lesson on illegal gambling in Saskatchewan … or at least, more recent than the days when Moose Jaw was a den of iniquity, allegedly hosting Al Capone.
The resistance from the seven or eight terrified casino staff — presumably the reason RCMP officers thought they needed dogs, helicopters, road blocks and a tactical assault strategy — was something less than expected.
The handful of employees were locked in a back room as blackjack tables were smashed and slot machines leaking quarters were carted out to a waiting semi-trailer. Outside, band councillors, including Whitebear Chief Bernie Shepherd, were charged with operating an illegal gaming establishment.
That set off a pitched battle between First Nations and the then-NDP government, which was already heavily into the money-making business of VLTs and burgeoning government-run casinos.
Everyone at the the table is a winner, right? Well, not quite, say CIC officials.
They are “technically illegal” in Saskatchewan, CIC officials reminded us during a briefing last week.
“Technically illegal” gambling? Cutting into gaming profits that could be paying bills or going to worthy charities here at home? Given our political history, one’s ears surely perk up when one hears such words.
Well, it is of interest to CIC and government officials, who say there are plans for further discussions with the Ford government as to how to deal with this “grey area.”
This likely won’t mean storming into Doug Ford’s office and busting up his furniture. Lessons have been learned … like sharing gaming profits.
Nevertheless, Saskatchewan does need to address the “illegal gaming” problem Ontario has created.
Mandryk is the political columnist for the Regina Leader-Post and the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.
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