Jotting down licence plate numbers of mangled cars to use in the weekly Four-Digit Numbers (4D) lottery punt is one of the more bizarre expressions of Singaporeans little known love of gambling.

Betting on your dead dad's tombstone number is another.

Susan, a 44-year-old personal assistant in a local manufacturing firm, told AFP recurrent dreams of her late father had prompted her to punt on his tombstone number.

"I'm very close to my dad, so each time I dream about him, I'll buy his tombstone number," said Susan, who has been waging around S$20 (US$12 ) a week on the lotteries since her father died four years ago.

"It's not some form of compensation I'm looking for, he was a regular gambler himself, I'm just following in his footsteps."

Plain superstition it may seem, but Susan's tactics came up trumps in February when she won S$5000 from a S$1 ticket in the 4D draw.

Indeed, gambling begins at home for many of the Southeast Asian nation's mostly ethnic-Chinese population, who grow up with the familiar rattle of shuffling mahjong tiles -- a noisy, dominoes-style game which is usually played for money -- during Lunar New Year, funerals or family gatherings.

The issue of gambling in Singapore has flared into the spotlight over recent months amid a public debate over the government's proposal to approve the building of the city-state's first casino.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said he will announce the government's decision on the casino, which would be part of a family-orientated "integrated resort" of other entertainment facilities, in parliament on Monday.

But even without the casino, gambling Singaporeans already lose billions of dollars each year through horse racing, lotteries, football and jackpot machines.

A government survey released last week showed more than half of Singaporeans gambled on a regular basis, with well-heeled and highly-educated citizens making up a sizeable proportion of that statistic.

The survey of 2004 residents found that 58 percent of Singaporeans aged 18 and above had gambled in the past year, with two percent regarded as addicts.

Middle-aged Chinese men with post-secondary education and disposable incomes of S$2000 (US$1235) a month were found to be the group most susceptible to gambling addiction.

A gambler in Singapore wagered on average $244 a month.

State-linked Singapore Pools has a turnover of around four billion dollars a year -- or 11 million dollars per day -- by offering wagers on lotteries and local and international football matches, according to company spokeswoman Moone Yip.

Its annual Lunar New Year sweepstakes, which allows winnings to snowball to a heady 10-million-dollar grand prize, sees queues of blue-collar workers and professionals alike snaking outside the betting outlets.

Those who want a faster bet can plonk in front of one of the estimated 2000 jackpot machines scattered across the island, some offering flutters for as little as 20 cents per draw.

The machines, housed in sports and country clubs, are a colourful juxtaposition to the mainstream recreational activities of their surroundings and show how Singapore's authorities already allowing gambling and family-oriented activities to co-exist.

Experts say that for the average man-in-the-street living in Asia's third most affluent populace, gambling offers an imaginary ticket out of the social rat race.

"It's an unbeatable proposition," Bryan Yeo, a private psychologist, told AFP. "Where else can you, for a $100, get the chance to win 10, 20 times the return?"

"Gambling's become part and parcel of life in Singapore, people don't blink an eye so much when they talk about it these days."

Some locals, weary of their options here, are also known to travel overseas for their gambling fix.

Droves of Singaporeans make the five-hour road trip up to neighbouring Malaysia's casino haven Genting Highlands on weekends and public holidays.

Other die-hards chalk up regular "holidays" on cruise ships that offer on-board gambling once they leave Singapore waters, or journey as far as high-roller destinations Macau and Las Vegas.


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