Members of the Lagos State House of Assembly have adopted the report of a Bill for a Law to establish the Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority Bill, 2020 from the Committee on Finance.
The Bill is to provide for the regulation and control of all gaming activities in the State.
It would be recalled that the Committee on Finance chaired by Hon. Rotimi Olowo held a Public Hearing on Friday, 14th August, 2020 in order to get inputs from necessary stakeholders and the public.
Hon. Rotimi Olowo while presenting the report on Monday, 21 September, 2020 stated that the stakeholders at the public hearing made some of the following observations: that the relevant registered association/stakeholders and licensees in the lottery business should be carried along by the Governor in the appointment of members of the Board; that a person without subsisting license or authorization from the authority shall not operate, conduct or deploy any equipment, manager or accept wages or make advertisement for any gaming activity in the state amongst others.
The following recommendations were made by the Committe: that the members of the Board shall be appointed by the Governor subject to the confirmation of the House; and that the Authority shall submit to the Governor through the Commissioner an annual estimate of its expenditure for the next succeeding year in accordance with budgeting guidelines in the State.
The Committee also recommended that pool betting activities should be excluded from the stringent provisions of Section 23 (1) (a) as it is a game that is nearing extinction and needs to be encouraged since the activity is done once a week and mostly patronized by the elderly.
The House through the Speaker, Rt. Hon. (Dr.) Mudashiru Obasa, thereafter adopted the recommendations as the resolutions of the House.
In another development, the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority Bill, 2020 and the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Bill, 2020 scaled through their first readings.