As reported last week, the Eastern Cape Gambling and Betting Board has been considering Sun International’s application to renew its casino licence for the Wild Coast. Pondoland King Justice Mpondombini Sigcau is taking on the international casino giant over a 100-year lease agreement for 640 hectares of prime coastland at a monthly cost of R2,500 (just under US$322). 103 families were apparently uprooted for the original Wild Coast Sun development and are still awaiting compensation twenty years later.

Sun International claims that 500 permanent jobs and 700 casual jobs are at stake if its casino licence is not renewed but Sigcau says that 77% of locals remain unemployed and 99% of housing is informal with only 9% having potable water. The Mbizana Development Trust, mandated under Gambling Board instructions as a vehicle for social upliftment in the area, in four years has not completed the necessary paperwork. Sigcau wants the licence not to be renewed until the compensation claim is settled. He also wants the Board to impose strict conditions on licence renewal to redress past injustices and ensure a percentage of Wild Coast profits actually gets to benefit the community.

The Board gave Sigcau’s lawyers fourteen days to present further submissions and Sun International fourteen days after that to respond. The Mbizana Development Trust has submitted details of its structure and list of projects said to be worth around R340 million (US$43.7 million), but the Gambling Board has to decide whether the Trust should be left in the hands of the current trustees. Acting Chief Executive of the Board, Mabutho Zwane, has said that the renewal of Wild Coast Sun's licence would now require legal advice, particularly regarding the status of the lease agreement in the face of the unsettled land claim. He expressed the opinion that the delays were unacceptable.

The Eastern Cape Gambling and Betting Board has today issued a draft request for proposals for a 10-year casino licence for the west of the province. A bidders conference has been set for 5 September where parties can express their interest. Sun International, which operates the Boardwalk in Port Elizabeth, is expected to bid in an effort to keep its casino licence. Following a final request for proposals the closing date for applications will be 15 December 2008.

Proposed minimum criteria for the licence applications include “a minimum investment of R750-million (US$96.5 million), minimum facilities required including a hotel and restaurant, and minimum shareholding by Eastern Cape- based empowerment shareholders and trusts. The development must also be a tourist attraction to bolster the economy in the region.

A long way from the Eastern Cape the first phase of Sun International’s casino complex in Chile is due to open in October. The Monticello Grand Casino, in a prime position to the south of capital city Santiago, is a venture in partnership with Novomatic and will become the largest casino resort in South America. The retail and entertainment components of the development remain scheduled for completion at the end of calendar 2008 and the hotel is due to open in May 2009. (E-08.11.08)

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