Jakarta – The government through the Coordinating Ministry for Community Empowerment has announced a new initiative in an effort to address the social and psychological impacts of online gambling. This step will involve providing intensive care for victims of online gambling, which has increasingly disturbed society in recent years.
The intensive treatment program aims to provide support to individuals who are negatively affected by online gambling addiction. The initiative will include psychological counseling, group therapy, and rehabilitation services that can help victims recover and return to normal life.
Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment, Muhaimin Iskandar or Cak Imin said that the government will provide assistance to victims of online gambling.
“Definitely (provide assistance), because this is part of the social victims and of course apart from BPJS, then we also have various assistance from the Ministry of Social Affairs,” said Cak Imin
Cak Imin touched on the condition of online gambling victims who are in a worrying condition. The behavior and lives of the victims are also destroyed, so the state must take steps to help and rehabilitate.
“Our task is to work together to overcome this and my task as the Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment is to see and overcome it from the social aspect,” he said.
At RSCM itself, there were 46 patients treated throughout 2024 due to online gambling addiction. That number has tripled compared to 2023. In the same period, there were around 126 outpatients. This number has also doubled compared to 2023.
Currently, Cak Imin admitted that he is coordinating with the Ministry of Health to record data on online gambling addiction patients in other hospitals.
“I am asking several ministries, including cooperation with the Ministry of Health, to continue to detect in all hospitals. This is just the initial step at RSCM,” he concluded.