Coordination with Coordinating Minister for PM, Menkomdigi Highlights the Importance of Collaboration to Fight Online Gambling

Pertemuan Menkomdigi Meutya Hafid dengan Menko PM Muhaimin Iskandar (foto: dok. Komdigi)

JAKARTA - Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid together with Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment (Menko PM) Muhaimin Iskandar, emphasised the importance of collaboration between ministries/agencies in combating online gambling.

‘Online gambling is very troubling and detrimental to society, it has become a social disaster because it destroys the cycle of community welfare. I have coordinated with the Minister of Communications and Technology, Mbak Meutya, so that the practice of online gambling can be suppressed,’ said Cak Imin after his meeting with the Minister of Communications and Technology on Thursday, 28 November.

According to the PM, online gambling has the potential to become a social disaster that triggers new poverty in Indonesia. This is because people are only interested in profits even though they will definitely experience losses.

Thus, he emphasised the importance of literacy and education regarding the dangers of online gambling for all people in Indonesia, seeing that so many people have become victims of online gambling.

‘So we have to make literacy to the community. Because the 8.8 million people involved in online gambling are new poverty contributors who after becoming victims will become new poor people,’ he concluded.

According to him, digital literacy needs to be intensified to increase public awareness that online gambling is fraud. Therefore, collaboration from various parties is very important as a preventive and anticipatory step.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Komdigi also explained that he at the Ministry of Komdigi continues to strengthen their prevention and supervision.

‘We detected online gambling sites and related account numbers. We takedown the site, while the account is reported to OJK, banking, and PPATK for follow-up,’ she said.

In fact, Meutya added, she has also coordinated with digital platforms such as Meta, TikTok, or Google, to comply with Indonesian rules and support efforts against online gambling.

With a collaborative approach between various ministries and stakeholders, the government is optimistic that it can reduce the negative impact of online gambling.

‘As long as we are united and work together, God willing, we can handle this problem better,’ said Meutya.