"We will operate an unprecedented activity in Brazil since the prohibition of bingos"

GMB: Tell us a little bit how and when was the idea of setting up this gaming house born?
Rogério Dell'Erba Guarnieri : We did not call Winfil a gaming house, but an Entertainment House. The first thing we should demystify for the Porto Alegre people is prec isely this. We are opening an entertaining venue. For 14 years lawyer Laerte is trying in several instances to make that the crime of contravention is not connected to games. He had deferments and denials throughout that time, going through several instances until last year. Around November he had a decision passed in Region 4, of Rio Grande do Sul, deferred by a judge. We are representing the Pefaco group, which has hotels and operations of machines in Europe, and we have been analyzing this judged decision that has gone up to the Federal Supreme Court.

We pondered a lot, and at that moment he had two open venues that were Rome and the Colosseum, which were being a success from November to February, March. That's when we made the decision, because they worked normally. There were the interpellations of the competent organs here at the south, but, they were reopening; what he had in hand was a strong thing, it was not an injunction but a decision passed and tried and that made the Supreme Court vow monocratically. That is to say: out of 11 ministers, five had voted in favor of the decision passed and judged to have created RE 966177 and gave a favorable opinion. At that moment the president of the Supreme Court, Carmem Lucia, requested a hearing of the part of the case because it had many contestations and raised a point of order for a vote. On this point of order, this RE 966177 had votes 9 to 2. So we started the project of this house of entertainment to open headquarters in Porto Alegre and filed in state courts to open branches in other states.

Who are the owners? Do they have history in the industry or come from another market? How was the project assembled in terms of structure for the public?
We made a high investment. We chose a house of 5,600 m², in the south zone of Porto Alegre, in Cavalhada Avenue, 5148, which is a noble address of the city and we started the project. This venue has ample parking for 150 cars, and a its capacity is for 400 to 450 machines. We also created a restaurant for 122 seats. Within the ruling that this RE 966177 has with the STF, we began the process of legalization of the company in the face of the fact that we can exploit this activity that, until then, is unprecedented in the country, due to the previous prohibition. Namely, we prioritize having the work register of all registered employees and we offer them all the benefits, such as transportation costs, food stamps, medical care.

The company is owned by its partners, and I am one of them. There is no name of another person in charge of the business, but our own names. We pay all necessary taxes, all purchases are made through invoices and the entire investment was done correctly. We will pay all the prizes correctly, all the machines placed here will have invoices and will be to our name, we will pay the royalties to all the machine manufacturers that have the software so that we can integrate to the machines manufactured nationally. We do not have any imported machines, we only pay the royalties for each manufacturer, that is, we do not have any machine clones and the intellectual property of the games remains the manufacturer's. There are 40 royalties based on contract.

Ground Floor of Winfil

Are you prepared to act legally to defend yourself against a possibility of closure?
The lawyer is on my side and I want him to answer that part of possible problems that we may have.
Laerte Luis Gschwenter (Advocate) - In fact we already have this experience that consists of the following terms:

1) - We are going to make a preventive interpellation to all the authorities that make up the structure of public security and in this interpellation we will be aware of the unanimity of decisions of the gaucho (Porto Alegre) recursal court.
2) - We will be aware of the filing and non-receipt of the federal prosecutor's resources at the federal level. And we will be aware of the process of overcoming, that is, of the determination of our court and alsofromthe STF plenary to order to suspend all actions that deal with gambling objects.
Based on this, we will preemptively demonstrate the entire operation of the company, from tax procedures, through the part of labor rights policy, demonstrating all the effectiveness of the administrative law that makes up the operating permits, fire prevention plan. Finally, on the basis that the absence of a market regulatory rule can not impose a prohibition on private free enterprise, based on Article 5, Article 170 of the Constitution, which is where we gave technical-legal support regarding the change of orientation towards the conduct.
I am calling this work Farropilha Revolution, but this time for the right that the country can face the chaos and recover from the moral and economic crisis that the political inertia caused.

GMB: Rogerio, besides the venue that you are opening in Porto Alegre, your idea is to open others in Rio Grande do Sul and also reach other states. Tell us a little more about this project.
Rogério Dell'Erba Guarnieri : The sector has been oppressed since 2006 and people want to work and we will make partnerships from the head office of Rio Grande do Sul. We will open 20 houses in the state: four in Porto Alegre, two in São Leopoldo, two in Novo Hamburgo, three in Gramado and Lajeado and one house in Capão, Canela, Caxias, Esteio and Pelotas. In partnerships, we will not allow only games venues but houses of entertainment. All of them will be called Winfil and will be subsidiaries of the headquarters of Porto Alegre.

Ground Floor - 2nd Pav. of Winfil

Source: GMB Exclusive