With the well-known ill will of the National Congress to legalize bingo games and casinos in projects that have been underway for almost a decade - always reinvigorated in annexes or new texts - the Federal Supreme Court can take a step forward on the subject, in the wake of the monopoly of Caixa in lotteries.
Casino and bingo are games of chance within the scope of the Criminal Misdemeanor Law, which turns 80 in 2021.
There are two lawsuits in court: one reported by President Luiz Fux, and another by Minister Edson Fachin, which may or may not decriminalize the activity in his vote-report.
The eventual non-reception of Article 50 of the 1941 Law by the Federal Constitution of 1985 may pave the way for the return of games of chance.
This is the bet of businessmen in the sector, whose operations were banned by President Lula in 2003.
Pioneer
The thesis is similar to the one that was judged last week by the STF, which overturned an article in Federal Law that gave the Union exclusivity to promote lotteries.
States that do not yet explore lotteries have already formed working groups at the Treasury departments to launch lotteries (especially instant lotteries) in the first quarter of 2021.
Leandro Mazzini is a journalist, writer and post-graduated in Political Science from UnB. He started his career in 1994, and worked at Jornal do Brasil, Gazeta Mercantil, Correio do Brasil, Agência Rio among others. The Column Esplanada debuted in December 2011, today it is reproduced in more than 50 newspapers and portals in 25 states.
Source: Leandro Mazzini - Coluna Esplanada
