Young veterans from the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) have urged local authorities to make sure that controversial poker machines are eliminated from its clubs.
For the time being, there are about 280 RSL sub-branches in the state of Victoria. A total of 52 of them have poker machines. Lately, a group of young veterans headed by the former Army officer David Petersen is calling for higher welfare payments of veterans and stricter measures aimed at tackling gambling machines for spreading further.
The 32-year-old Petersen is currently president of the Camberwell sub-branch, where there currently are no poker machines. According to him, the RSL should not be involved in the gambling industry by running any poker machines for a number of reasons. Peterson also explained that so-called pokies do not bring the organisation’s sub-branches a lot of money. Mr Petersen further noted that the community is often misled to think that the veterans’ organisation gets a lot of money from pokies but that is not true.
According to reports, the 52 sub-branches of the RSL generated total revenue of approximately AU$260 million and about AU$8 million in profit in 2017. Less than 4% of the above-mentioned revenue, or about AU$9.8 million, were redirected to welfare programs which are shared between the veterans and the wider community.
Pokies Not Such a Big Contributor to RSL Revenue
The presence of pokies in the sub-branches of the organisation has been backed by Brigadier Mike Annett, who is a state secretary of the Victorian RSL. He explained that state sub-branches put about AU$9.8 million “to a greater or lesser degree” directly to some services which are supportive of veterans. A further amount of AU$6.8 million raised by appeals is only redirected to veterans in need.
However, Mr Peterson does not think that the funds which are generated to boost veteran welfare in the state justify the negative impact brought to society by poker machines. He explained that there is a large number of veterans who have had suicidal behaviour associated with a gambling, alcohol or drug addiction of some type. That is why he believes that the organisation’s sub-branches should not be in charge of any pokies that could increase the impact of gambling and alcohol addictions.
For years now, poker machines have been associated with a lot of negative consequences for Australians. A large number of local residents have been betting on the controversial machines, which have been blamed for causing problem gambling that could seriously worsen the quality of life of the people affected.
Now, it turns out that some RSL veterans have also been affected by the harm associated with the controversial machines. Some have seen them as an opportunity for RSL to add more money to its budget, but still, several RSLs in Victoria have closed over the last ten years due to financial difficulties. The organisation as a whole plans to rely on pokies even more, as the veteran offering has been expanded through a network of professionalise welfare hubs situated away from regular RSL locations.
- Author
Daniel Williams
