There was always a public controversy on whether S’pore should build a casino or not. And not long ago, the government of Singapore endorsed the proposal of setting up 2 casinos in Marina Bay and Santosa Island. It will be investing S$5 billion and will be in operation by 2009. I personally quite approve of this sensible decision. I believe both the two casinos will become world-famous integrated resorts and S’pore will be more vigorous and energetic in terms of economic growth, attracting foreign investment, and so on.
The government has proposed to build up the two casinos, with the aim of booming both tourism and tourism service. Analysts said that the project will help S’pore to attract 17 million tourists and get a tax income as much as S$30 billion by 2015. With such a huge amount of incomes, the government will be able to improve the public services and to allocate more money to the charity committees. Thus, the casinos will help to enhance the living quality of Singaporeans.
Moreover, the setting up of the casinos will provide a good deal of job opportunities. This will do good to the people who lose their jobs and also help draw down the unemployment rate.
What’s more, the casinos will help to alter some foreigners’ opinion on S’pore. S’pore portrays to foreigners the image that it is a beautiful, clean but a little serious and dull country. The establishing of the casinos may change this point of view. To some extent, the building of the casinos inject vigor into Singapore.
Many citizens concerned that the casinos would bring many problems to Singapore, such as increasing of crime rate, proliferation of loan sharks, excessive gambling and so on. And they also believe that the casinos will destroy the reputation of hard-working, virtuous Singaporeans with high integrity.
However, I trust Singapore’s government as well as its citizens. I know that it is such an honest and clean government that it will be able to put such things to control. Singapore is a highly-developed city and its people have a high level of self-discipline. Gambling games like Blackjack, MaJong, have been popular for a long time and that prove that Singaporeans are capable of dealing with social problems that gambling brings to them. A survey from MCYS (Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports) showed that 58% of Singaporeans aged above 18 engaged in some form of gambling activities in the past, only 2.1% are probable pathological gamblers.
According to what I mentioned above, the casinos will benefit Singapore and will make a more vigorous and energetic country than ever.
Zhengli (441 words)
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