In Turkey, the debate over gambling has stepped out of the sidelines and into the middle of politics. The Republican People’s Party (CHP) is now pushing for a full reset of how the country handles betting and gaming, arguing that the current system is messy, outdated, and no longer able to keep up with how people actually gamble today. The proposal seeks to completely remodel the current legal and regulatory structure rather than only adjusting existing regulations.
In addressing Parliament, Ozan Bingöl, council member of CHP, and Murat Emir, the Deputy CHP, stated there is one common objective of the plan: that Turkey establish a comprehensive national set of regulations governing all gambling forms. Right now, gambling rules sit across different laws and institutions, which the CHP says leads to confusion and weak oversight. Under their proposal, a new Gambling Regulation and Supervision Authority would take charge of the sector, replacing the patchwork system with 1 dedicated body responsible for regulation and control.
Criticism of the Current Gambling Model
But the problem, he told lawmakers, is not just one of tidying up the current system. Instead, he said, the goal was to solve what he termed the ‘deep crisis’ that had been ongoing since and worsened under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling AKP party. The system, he said, had not been responsive enough to the alterations brought by technological and market evolution. As a result, the problems had begun to spread out from the center of the system.
Among the concerns was the way in which gaming had become available via smartphones and other devices. Emir warned that when betting is so easy to access, drawing a clear boundary between regulated offerings and illegal platforms becomes increasingly difficult. He argued that what the government labels as legal gambling often ends up acting as a pathway into unlicensed markets, saying that people first learn and start playing in legal channels before some of them are pulled into criminal sites.
Questions Over the State’s Role in Gambling
The CHP’s proposal also challenges how the state itself is involved in gambling. Emir and his colleagues have raised questions about the prominence of state-backed operators IDDAA and Milli Piyango. They argue that the strong presence of these brands has helped normalize gambling in everyday life without solving the issue of illegal activity.
According to Emir, the state is sending mixed signals by allowing, taxing, and profiting from legal gambling on one hand, while at the same time promising to fight illegal betting on the other. He went as far as to say that everyone can see how the legal system ends up feeding the illegal one, since both are closely connected in practice. For the opposition, this contradiction is a key reason why the current model needs to be rethought.
Strengthening Financial Oversight Through MASAK
Beyond laws and regulators, the CHP wants to focus on where the money flows. A major part of their plan involves strengthening the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK). The party sees MASAK as central to breaking down the financial structures behind illegal gambling, especially when it comes to money laundering and the use of rented bank accounts.
Emir emphasized that merely shutting down websites or arresting offenders is not sufficient to shut down illegal operations. Without addressing the financial infrastructure that sustains these operations, he believes that enforcement efforts will merely scratch the surface. By empowering MASAK, the CHP believes that it can attack the financial conduits that sustain illegal operations.
A Political Test for Turkey’s Gambling Future
With this proposed legislation, the CHP is attempting to make gambling policy a test of responsibility for those in power. By advocating a single Gambling Law, a new regulatory body, and stricter financial controls, the opposition is attempting to position itself as the side of the debate that is advocating for greater clarity and consistency. At the same time, it is attempting to put pressure on President Erdoğan and the AKP to account for what it sees as the long-existing weaknesses and contradictions in the current system.
Regardless of whether this legislation passes or not, it is clear that the message is that gambling is no longer being treated as a side issue. In Turkey’s Parliament, it is now part of a larger conversation about regulation, state responsibility, and how to deal with the growing mix of legal and illegal markets in a digital age.
Source: Focus Gaming News