District Attorney Jose Manuel Hernandez Peguero said that as of 5 December some 3,000 signatures had been collected in a petition against the recently passed law that authorizes the installation of slot machines in sporting betting shops. He hopes that President Leonel Fernandez will present a recourse of violation of the Constitution of the law to the Supreme Court of Justice.
The law also extends the working hours of casinos and grants them privileged tax exemptions. The law is due to be signed into law by President Fernandez. There is widespread opposition to the law from several quarters, on the grounds that it poses a threat to young Dominicans, by making gambling more easily available to the public.
Hernandez Peguero insists that the law violates Art. 8 of the Constitution that establishes that one of the roles of the state is to adopt rules that fight social vices with adequate measures and with the assistance of conventions and international organizations.
“The passing of this law is shameful at a time when the country needs all its institutions and political leaders to seek immediate solutions to serious problems of education, citizen safety, the fragility of the family, and respect for the rights of women,” he said.