The Irony of Online Gambling and the Solution

Today Indonesia is plagued by an acute social disease in the form of online gambling.  The perpetrators do not recognize class and class: young and old, male and female, rich and poor, officials and non-officials, are completely trapped in online gambling. What is wrong with this nation? It is said that its daily life is based on Pancasila. This is what is called an anomaly, deviating from what should be. Why does this happen? In common sense, there are several factors or variables to answer this question. For example, the lack of employment and high unemployment in Indonesia. BPS data as of August 2023 shows that as many as 9.89 million generation Z (aged 15-24 years) are not in school, not working, and not participating in training, aka being unemployed.

Source: BBC Indonesia

In addition, recent layoffs by companies of productive workers have made those affected vulnerable to instant thinking, wanting to quickly have money in practical ways such as by gambling. This is when viewed from the side of those who are economically disadvantaged. The urgent and emergency conditions for living make them trapped in online gambling shortcuts. In fact, online gambling players also involve those who are classified as economically well-off. For example, members of parliament, officials, civil servants (PNS), private employees, entrepreneurs, and so on. Why can they get caught up in online gambling? Aren't they financially sufficient?

In my opinion, they can be trapped in online gambling because they are fragile, forget themselves, and do not realize that they are children of the nation who should be committed to the noble teachings of Pancasila. The precepts of Pancasila, which are the fundamentals of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI), are only used as a display, aka not realized in real daily behavior. As the basis of the state, Pancasila clearly teaches that Belief in One God is the first principle that must always be a guideline for every Indonesian citizen.

That there is no religion recognized by the state that allows its adherents to engage in gambling. That God is always watching the behavior of His servants and God will definitely reward mankind according to their deeds so that there is no reason for religious people to violate religious teachings. This precept is actually the basic key to all aspects of the life of the nation and state. If this precept is fully realized, then the other precepts can be easily realized. Its position as the first precept can be understood that all the problems of the nation will eventually run to the first precept as a solution.

Economic difficulties, for example, will be resolved if every citizen is close to God, consequently carrying out His commands and staying away from His prohibitions. Not solving problems by creating new problems whose impact is very fatal and destructive. Economic difficulties, wanting to get established quickly, wanting to quickly escape the economic crisis and live happily, the way out is not by playing slot gambling, jackpots and others─but rather by asking for help from God Almighty and working hard on legal channels. God never sleeps, is never poor, is all-rich, all-good, and all-everything. It is to Him that every servant must rely and depend on, not the bookies and online loans (pinjol).

Online gambling has recently been very destructive, its impact completely destroying the lives of people who are entangled. Not a few online gamblers have to commit suicide due to depression because they lose gambling, while at the same time they have to pay off the high-interest online loans that they use as capital for online gambling. There are not a few online gambling players who become insane, kill their parents, burn their own homes because they don't have money to gamble online and some are even killed by their partners who feel annoyed with their gambling behavior.

Responding to this very destructive online gambling, the government does not remain silent. Several decisive steps have been taken, starting from blocking online gambling sites, arresting individuals who are proven to promote online gambling, become bookies, to the formation of a task force to handle online gambling. However, eradicating online gambling that has already spread and damaged society is not enough just by doing these things.

The government needs to take the right approach so that this disease will soon disappear from Indonesia. In my opinion, the solution is the welfare approach. Don't let people be unemployed without income, don't let people not have jobs. Keep people busy with labor-intensive activities. And last but not least, the government needs to review the effectiveness of Pancasila and Citizenship Education (PPKN) either as compulsory subject matter in schools or as compulsory course material in universities. PPKN material should not be limited to mere formality, but really must be lived and internalized into the soul of each student, especially related to the substance of the first principle of Pancasila which acts as a shield and national identity.