The students said based on the survey they conducted among 167 respondents, the proliferation of poker arcades has “greatly contributed to the continuous growth of crime rate and family dislocation in the community.”
The respondents included 95 females and 70 males.
Among them were 98 islanders, 28 Filipinos, eight were Chinese, four Koreans, while the rest had mixed ethnicities.
U.S. citizen-respondents totaled 134 while 31 were Asians living on island.
Majority of the respondents, 81, were between the ages of 18 and 21 while 32 were between 22 and 25 years old.
Forty-two respondents were 26 years old and above.
109 of the respondents said they play poker.
The survey indicated that 76 of the respondents who play poker are unemployed; 37 work for the private sector; 34 are government employees; and two are retires.
Fifty-seven admitted playing poker up to three hours, while 25 said they play everyday.
Thirty-six said they spend more than $100 to play the game.
Seventy-five admitted their “addiction” while 11 respondents abstained from answering the survey question.
Asked if their playing time affects their personality and families, 76 said “yes,” 81 said “no,” while 10 did not respond.
The students’ report cited the Department of Public Safety’s study which indicated that the over 750 crimes related to the poker industry committed beginning in 2001 included child abuse, spousal abuse, substance abuse, neglect, theft, minor curfew violations and other domestic violence cases.
Sam McPhetres, the Current Issues class instructor of NMC, noted that 60 percent of the violent crimes in the CNMI in 2003 were committed in or near the more than 200 poker establishments on Saipan.
McPhetres said although the government collects $3 million from poker revenues to fund its scholarship program, the industry’s adverse effects cannot be ignored.
According to the students’ report, “The poker industry has gone sour in our islands. It has done more damage than good. There are more empty poker establishments nowadays, so what makes us think that it’s helping any of us?”
The students said they support the proposal to eliminate poker arcades from residential areas.
