Prestes Filho is a specialist in Culture Economy and was scientific coordinator of the research on the Productive Chains of the Economy of Music and Economy of Carnival. In his first book, about the 30 years of the Sambódromo, he offered the voice to those who knew how to transform the Carioca carnival into the greatest Mega Cultural Event in the World: Anísio Abraham David, Ailton Guimarães Jorge, Luiz Pacheco Drummond and Carlinhos Maracanã.
GMB - What reasons led you to write a book defending gaming and associating it with science and public policy in probability theory?
Luiz Carlos Prestes Filho - The discussion on the regulation of money betting games managed by private initiative in Brazil concerns the maintenance of the current democratic regime of law. We have to assert the Constitution of 1988 and thus annul the effects of the Constitution of the New State Dictatorship, Getúlio Vargas (1937/1945), and the Constitution of the Military Dictatorship of 1967, promulgated after the 1964 Coup. Specifically the law of Criminal Offenses, which is 1941, and Decree Law 204/1967. These two legal instruments are in force and are cited in reports related to Senator Ciro Nogueira's Bill 186/2014. My book came to show that the time has come to nullify the effect of this authoritarian rubbish. Laws that banned casinos, bingos, and gambling were created at times when they tortured, murdered, and disappeared compatriots. We can not allow them to continue. In Decree Law 204/1967 it is written that it is "the duty of the State, to safeguard the integrity of social life, to prevent the emergence and proliferation of prohibited games that are susceptible of attaining national security." Democracy is a political system that is above ideologies and religions. We can not accept this authoritarian vision for professionals working with gaming and for players. The book helps to understand that we must nullify the effects of laws created in dictatorial governments. In my opinion, it is frivolous for the state to identify someone in a bingo manager, a casino, or a gambling banker who threatens national security.
As an industry expert, what contribution do you hope to make to regulating the activity with the publication of your new book?
I wish readers to know that it was on the table of a sixteenth-century tavern, through scientific analysis of dice games, that one of the greatest mathematicians in history, Girolamo Cardano, designed the principles of Probability Theory. He made money bets and made use of probabilistic to win. The themes presented in his book "Líber de Ludo Álea", guided great mathematicians such as Pascal and Fermat. Therefore, the games did not bring only tragedies and diseases. The probabilistic models designed by Cardano still serve as an analysis tool in the sample-statistical field of Big Data, for example. In the book I present the article by Professor Aloisio Araújo, from the National Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA), which deals with themes that demonstrate how much probabilistic today has relation with Public Policies. On the other hand, Professor Jorge Avila, former president of the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), recalls that gaming activities are fundamental to move science, technology and innovation centers. A theme that has not been debated throughout the current process that seeks regulation of casinos, bingos and jogo do bicho is that of "Intellectual Property." Lawyer Frederico Lemos presents in the book an important reflection when he asks: "Is Brazil's destiny in the area of gaming solely to import software and hardware? Will casinos be exclusive islands of imported services and products?"
The book shows that the time has come to bring the best Brazilian universities - public and private - to benefit from the results of regulation. These can play a structuring role in the sector equal to American, English, French, Japanese or Chinese universities.
The book contains chapters of its own and others signed by writers. How was the choice of topics and authors to address the issue of probability and to associate it with science, public policy and gaming regulation?
We look for authors and personalities with excellence of knowledge in the sector. But we cast a glance at the horizon. We understand that the words of Defense Minister, Raul Jungmann, who recognizes that it is a "nonsense" to relate gaming with national sovereignty, is fundamental for the advancement of the regulatory debate. See, in 2007, when the bingos closed, many managers and owners of these legally functioning venues were arrested in maximum security prisons. This is because the State considers that gaming activity threatens national security! In this context, the words of Army General Mauro Barroso, who recalls that the main ideologist of the Brazilian Security Doctrine, Golbery do Couto e Silva, tried to regulate the jogo do bicho, is something very interesting. But we associate the struggle for the regulation of gaming with Probability Theory, as I said above, to show that in 500 years activity has made a great contribution to the development of science in general and of mathematics in particular.
One chapter draws attention: "Gaming and National Sovereignty". Could you summarize the concept of this association?
Senator José Serra even went so far as to say, in a text published in the newspaper "O Estado de S.Paulo" that regulated gambling will promote "increasing what is prohibited", such as money laundering. When they ask him to bring facts, he does not bring facts. Even because the vision of this senator is superficial and based on the precepts of the Constitution of 1967. Scholars of the subject affirm that the international financial system, amid the economic crisis, has no liquidity. It is exactly this structure that guarantees the accomplishment of the illicit that Senator Serra throws up the betting game in cash. So much so that the head of the Russian Federal Office of Drug Control (FSKN), Minister Victor Ivanov, openly acknowledges that money laundering is carried out with the support of bankers and large corporations. According to this Russian minister, "most" of the illicit resources returns to the interested ones, "entirely clean by the washing promoted by great international banks".
Minister Ivanov points out that the British bank HSBC and the Americans Bank of America, Western Union and JP Morgan are on the list of financial institutions that promote money laundering. Are we going to ask for the closure of these banks in Brazil or are we going to inspect these financial institutions more and more? Casinos and bingos, condemned by the illustrious senator of the Republic as money-laundering agents, are not prominent in Russian reports. The jogo do bicho is not even remembered. Even because this modality has no similar in the world, it is isolated within our borders.
Senator Serra makes a speech to the audience about his assumptions that gaming is a threat to the state. So will we bring to the debate the assumptions made in the media this year that this same senator, along with banker Ronaldo Cezar Coelho, laundered money during the 2004 election campaign? The Federal Police indicted him for tax evasion. From what I read in Folha de S.Paulo newspaper, Serra did not need a casino or a bingo to do illegal transactions. Only of banks and licit companies.
Brazil has been debating the regulation of gaming for decades and never gets out of the debate. Is it time to pass a gaming law in Brazil?
Democracy has won! Finally, after 100 years of the proclamation of the Republic we are living the first cycle of governments elected by the people: Fernando Collor, FHC, Lula and Dilma. We have to radicalize towards democracy. The regulation of gaming, in my opinion, is part of this scenario.
Do you believe in the social benefits of gambling for the economy and tourism?
I repeat, democracy will be the biggest beneficiary. With the regulation of gambling in money we will begin the cleaning that our deputies and senators have not had the courage to perform since the 1988 Constituent Assembly. We have to nullify the damaging effects of the constitutions of authoritarian periods. Of course tourism can attract new flows of visitors. Rio de Janeiro is a much more attractive city than Las Vegas or Macau. From the economic point of view the state will have its benefits. We will be taking millions of bettors and gaming professionals out of illegality. The taxation of these activities will offer a new source of revenue. But we can not exaggerate, imagine that gambling activities will solve our economic crisis.
How should the pro-gaming politicians and operators be positioned to show society these benefits?
We must understand that political actors favoring the regulation of gambling managed by the private sector are experiencing terrible difficulties in developing their activities. The state does not want to give up its billion dollar revenues in lotteries. It creates all kinds of traps and often seeks to criminalize them. I think we have to be persistent and technical, always seek to deepen the theoretical debate. Do not seek the false path of ease that, for example, allowed bingos to be explored in the early 2000s. The activities were based on incredible legal uncertainty. So much that led to the 2007 disaster. Closed bingos, hundreds of businessmen arrested and thousands of laid-off workers.
There is no magic. We must seek legal security for Brazilians and foreigners to invest in casinos, bingos and jogo do bicho legally. Here I underline the importance of the text by Ana Paula Gatti Vital, which shows that in regulating the activity, we have to amnesty all the Brazilians who were criminalized for working with gaming.
The book is available in all bookstores that work with Editora E-papers / Frutos (R $ 45,00) and on the publisher's website (R $ 36,00 for the printed version and R $ 18,00 for the digital version ). The publisher's websites are www.e-papers.com.br and www.editorafrutos.com.br
Source: GMB Exclusive
