Additional hotlines for the Electrical Services

The Department of Electrical Services announces additional hotlines when the hotline 144 is unreachable:

719 0001
719 0002

The public can send SMS to the Department for blackout complaints.

HSBC Serusop extends banking hours

Hooray!!! Effective 1st July 2010, the HSBC Serusop extends its banking hours:

Week days - 9am to 9pm

Saturdays - 9am to 4pm

Public holidays - 11am to 4pm

HSBC - The World's Local Bank
http://www.hsbc.com.bn

Official Poster of Cabinet Ministers 2010 - 2015

The official poster of Cabinet Ministers of Brunei Darussalam for the term 2010 to 2015 published by the Department of Information, Prime Minister's Office, Brunei Darussalam. The hard copy poster was distributed through the Official Newspaper Pelita Brunei on the 2nd June 2010 issue.

This soft copy is extracted from the Department's official website, under "Publications":
http://www.information.gov.bn/VER2/images/Book/Poster_Menteri_-_Menteri_Mei10.gif

(click on image to enlarge, and save)

PENGUMUMAN KHAS

A special announcement broadcast live on Radio Televisyen Brunei, 16th June 2010, 20:00 hours by the Grand Chamberlain, Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Penggawa Laila Bentara Istiadat Diraja Dalam Istana Pengiran Haji Alaudin bin Pengiran Paduka Tuan Pengiran Haji Abu Bakar.

image (c) RTB News

Pada menjunjung titah perintah Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan dan yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam dengan ini, Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Paduka Seri Pengiran Bendahara Seri Maharaja Permaisuara Pengiran Muda Haji Sufri Bolkiah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, Pengerusi Majlis Mesyuarat Adat Istiadat Negara Brunei Darussalam memaklumkan bahawa baginda atas sebab-sebab yang khas, dipandu dan ditentukan oleh Hukum Syarak dalam perkara perkahwinan dan perceraian, dan juga dengan menepati maksud ayat suci Al-Qur'an Surah Al Baqarah, dari sebahagian ayat 229, iaitu menikahi dengan baik (ma'aruf) dan melepaskan juga dengan baik (ihsan), maka pada petang Rabu, 16 Jun 2010 bersamaan 3 Rejab 1431 telah menjatuhkan talak satu kepada isteri baginda, Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Pengiran Isteri Azrinaz Mazhar binti Hakim Mazhar.

Titah perintah baginda itu diumumkan dalam sabda oleh Grand Chamberlain, Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Penggawa Laila Bentara Istiadat Diraja Dalam Istana, Pengiran Haji Alauddin bin Pengiran Paduka Tuan Pengiran Haji Abu Bakar yang disiarkan secara langsung melalui Radio dan Televisyen Brunei pada jam 8.00 malam semalam.

Yang Amat Mulia dalam pengumuman tersebut juga menyabdakan bahawa pada menjunjung titah perintah Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam, mulai tarikh tersebut, terasul dan gelaran serta Bintang Kebesaran dan Pingat Kehormatan Negara Brunei Darussalam yang dikurniakan kepada bekas isteri baginda itu adalah ditarik balik.

Berikut dimuatkan teks penuh sabda pengumuman berkenaan :-

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim.

Alhamdulillahi Rabbil 'Alameen, Wassalatu Wassalamu 'Alaa Asyarafil Mursaleen, Wa'Alaa Aalihihie Wassahbihie Ajma'een.

Pada menjunjung titah perintah Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam dengan ini, Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Paduka Seri Pengiran Bendahara Seri Maharaja Permaisuara Pengiran Muda Haji Sufri Bolkiah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, Pengerusi Majlis Mesyuarat Adat Istiadat Negara Brunei Darussalam memaklumkan bahawa baginda atas sebab-sebab yang khas, dipandu dan ditentukan oleh Hukum Syarak dalam perkara perkahwinan dan perceraian, dan juga dengan menepati maksud ayat suci Al-Quran surah Al-Baqarah, dari sebahagian ayat 229, iaitu menikahi dengan baik (ma'aruf) dan melepaskan juga dengan baik (ihsan), maka pada petang Rabu, 3 Rejab 1431 bersamaan 16 Jun 2010 telah menjatuhkan talak satu kepada isteri baginda, Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Pengiran Isteri Azrinaz Mazhar binti Hakim Mazhar.

Maka sehubungan dengan ini, pada menjunjung titah perintah Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam, mulai tarikh tersebut, terasul dan gelaran serta Bintang Kebesaran dan Pingat Kehormatan Negara Brunei Darussalam yang dikurniakan kepada bekas isteri baginda itu adalah ditarik balik.

Text extracted from Pelita Brunei online, 17hb Jun 2010

Watch the video on RTB News http://www.rtbnews.rtb.gov.bn/?c=newsDetail&news_id=10094

New license plates only for new (3 initials) numbers

New licence plates only for new numbers

By Aziz Idris

It is now mandatory only for newly registered licence plates bearing three initials (BAA and above) to be replaced with the controversial 'small size' plates after serious reconsideration following public bashing.

Vehicles with one and two initials are not obliged to change their licence plates.

This was indicated in a statement released by the Land Transport Department (LTD) yesterday.

The new plates are made of smaller letters and numbers while their surface is embossed with material made from aluminium.

It falls under Vehicle Registration Plate 'Identification Marks' 2008 Act and Regulation under the Road Traffic Act, Chapter 68 on May 1, 2010.

The press release stated, "The act is enforced with the main aim for licence plates bearing three initials only, which is in accordance with the shape and size of plates in all Asean countries."

To ensure that the measurements are in line with the Act and Regulation, the department has now appointed seven local companies to supply and manufacture the new vehicle registration plates, two of which have begun operations and five to be operational soon.

According to the press statement, the two companies are Syarikat Bayu Ilham Motor Sdn Bhd located at No 6, Spg 80-45, Jln Gadong, Kg Pengkalan Gadong and Hock Motor Company located at at No 19, Spg 21, Km 3, Jln Gadong.

Meanwhile, the other five companies that will be operational soon are PAT's Corporation (B) Sdn. Bhd., Zen view Sdn Bhd, PYB Transportation Services, CKM Transportation Services and Syarikat Shalim (B) Sdn. Bhd.

The LTD also reminded the public to have their plates changed at these authorised shops.

Extracted from Borneo Bulletin, 16th June 2010, online at http://www.borneobulletin.com.bn/wed/jun16h2.htm

New Cabinet Ministers for 2010 - 2015

Posters from The Brunei Times extracted from Brunei Resources:

Titah Pengumuman Khas Rombakan Menteri-Menteri Kabinet Baru

Titah Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam Mengenai Rombakan Keahlian Majlis Mesyuarat Menteri-Menteri Kabinet dan Pelantikan-Pelantikan Baru

Image (c) Infofoto 2010

Assalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

Alhamdulillahi Rabbil ‘Alameen, Wabihie Nasta’eenu ‘Alaa Umuriddunya Waddeen, Wassalatu Wassalamu ‘Alaa Asyrafil Mursaleen, Sayyidina Muhammadin Wa’alaa Alihie Wasahbihie Ajma’een, Waba’du.

Awal kalam, kita wajib bersyukur ke hadhrat Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala di atas kemurahan-Nya mengurniakan kita pelbagai nikmat dan kelebihan.

Keadaan negara yang aman lagi makmur adalah segala-galanya. Tidak ada yang lebih dihajati daripada ini, kerana ia merupakan pintu kepada semua kebajikan.

Manakala negara, apabila berada dalam keadaan aman dan makmur, semua pembangunan akan berjalan lancar. Ditambah lagi dengan jentera kerajaan yang baik, akan membolehkan harapan semakin tinggi untuk melihat kejayaan.

Namun ini bukanlah datang bergolek begitu saja, tetapi perlu didahului dengan usaha dan kerja keras.

Tanpa usaha dan kerja keras, kita tidak akan kemana-mana.

Siapakah yang lebih wajar untuk mendepani usaha dan kerja keras itu? Jawabnya ialah barisan para pemimpin. Merekalah ikon rakyat untuk dicontohi, dan selaku contoh, mereka juga perlu memiliki personaliti dan syakhsiah yang hebat.

Kehebatan disini turut merangkumi sikap bersih, berkebolehan dan berwawasan, termasuk juga sanggup berbasah dan berkering, sehingga diri sendiri tidak lagi penting, berbanding pengorbanan untuk ugama, raja, bangsa dan negara.

Jika kita mempunyai pemimpin-pemimpin yang seumpama itu, maka kitalah orang yang paling beruntung, kerana rakyat dan penduduk boleh berkongsi kehebatan dengan mereka.

Inilah yang Beta harapkan, dan ini juga tema perombakan keahlian Majlis Mesyuarat Menteri-Menteri Kabinet dan beberapa lantikan baru, seperti berikut:

1. Beta sendiri selaku Sultan dan Yang Di-Pertuan Negara Brunei Darussalam menyandang jawatan sebagai Perdana Menteri, Menteri Pertahanan dan juga Menteri Kewangan.

2. Paduka Anakda Duli Pengiran Muda Mahkota Pengiran Muda Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, sebagai Menteri Kanan di Jabatan Perdana Menteri.

3. Paduka Adinda Duli Pengiran Perdana Wazir Sahibul Himmah Wal-Waqar Pengiran Muda Mohamed Bolkiah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, sebagai Menteri Hal Ehwal Luar Negeri dan Perdagangan.

4. Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia (Dr.) Haji Awang Abu Bakar bin Haji Apong sebagai Menteri Pendidikan.

5. Pehin Orang Kaya Johan Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Adanan bin Begawan Pehin Siraja Khatib Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mohd Yusof sebagai Menteri Kesihatan.

6. Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Suyoi bin Haji Osman sebagai Menteri Pembangunan.

7. Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar sebagai Menteri Perhubungan.

8. Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Utama Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Yahya bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar sebagai Menteri Perindustrian dan Sumber-sumber Utama.

9. Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abdul Rahman bin Haji Ibrahim sebagai Menteri Kewangan II (Kedua) di Jabatan Perdana Menteri.

10. Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Dewa Dato Seri Setia Lim Jock Seng sebagai Menteri Hal Ehwal Luar Negeri dan Perdagangan II (Kedua).

11. Pehin Datu Singamanteri Kolonel (Bersara) Dato Seri Paduka Awang Haji Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar sebagai Menteri Tenaga (Minister of Energy) di Jabatan Perdana Menteri.

12. Pengiran Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohammad bin Pengiran Haji Abdul Rahman sebagai Menteri Hal Ehwal Ugama.

13. Pehin Udana Khatib Dato Paduka Seri Setia Ustaz Haji Awang Badaruddin bin Pengarah Dato Paduka Haji Othman sebagai Menteri Hal Ehwal Dalam Negeri.

14. Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Laila Diraja Dato Paduka Awang Haji Hazair bin Haji Abdullah sebagai Menteri Kebudayaan, Belia dan Sukan.

15. Dato Paduka Awang Haji Abd Wahab bin Juned sebagai Timbalan Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri.

16. Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mustappha bin Haji Sirat sebagai Timbalan Menteri Pertahanan.

17. Awang Haji Bahrin bin Abdullah sebagai Timbalan Menteri Kewangan.

18. Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Yusoff bin Haji Ismail sebagai Timbalan Menteri Pendidikan.

19. Dato Paduka Awang Haji Ali bin Haji Apong sebagai Timbalan Menteri Pembangunan.

20. Pengiran Haji Bahrom bin Pengiran Haji Bahar sebagai Timbalan Menteri Hal Ehwal Ugama.

21. Pehin Datu Lailaraja Mejar Jeneral (Bersara) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof sebagai Timbalan Menteri Hal Ehwal Dalam Negeri; dan

22. Datin Hajah Adina binti Othman sebagai Timbalan Menteri Kebudayaan, Belia dan Sukan.

Perlantikan ini bermula dari hari ini, hari Sabtu, 15 haribulan Jamadilakhir tahun 1431 bersamaan dengan 29 haribulan Mei tahun 2010 bagi tempoh selama 5 tahun.

Beta dengan ini juga sukacita memaklumkan bahawasanya jawatan Mufti Kerajaan dan Peguam Negara mulai hari ini adalah sebagai jawatan bertaraf Menteri.

Lantikan-lantikan ini adalah amanah, dan amanah itu pula sangatlah berat. Jika kita berjaya menjalankannya, maka kitalah orang yang berbahagia, sebaliknya kalau kita gagal, maka penyesalan jua akan menunggu kita.

Lantikan juga bererti tugas, kewajipan dan kuasa. Ia mesti digunakan sejujurnya dengan penuh taat lagi setia.

Janganlah ada yang ingin mencipta haluan sendiri-sendiri untuk kepentingan yang terhad, tetapi bantulah raja untuk mencapai wawasan negara dengan keadilan.

Kita buktikan bahawa keadilan tidak mati di Brunei, tetapi ia hidup dan malah subur dari apa yang dijaja di mana-mana.

Akhirnya, Beta tidak lupa merakamkan penghargaan dan ucapan terima kasih kepada mereka yang tidak lagi dilantik, di atas khidmat dan jasa mereka yang disumbangkan selama ini, semoga Allah jua yang akan membalas mereka dengan kebajikan dan kebahagiaan.

Sekian, Wabillahit Taufeq Walhidayah, Wassalaamu 'Alaikum Warahmatullaahi Wabarakaatuh.

Last Updated ( Saturday, 29 May 2010 )

Extracted from Pressroom, Information Department

TAP Board Members 2010 / 2012

The Tabung Amanah Pekerja, TAP or Employees Trust Fund Board announces the appointment of members of the board for a period of two years with effect from 21st February 2010.

The appointment is pursuant to Sections 4(1) and 4(2) of Tabung Amanah Pekerja Act Chapter 167. With the consent of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the

• Chairman of the TAP Board is the Minister of Energy at the Prime Minister's Office
• Deputy Chairman is the Permanent Secretary at the Prime Minister's Office.

Members are:

• Permanent Secretary (Monetary) at the Ministry of Finance,
• Permanent Secretary, at the Ministry of Finance cum Managing Director of the Brunei Investment Agency,
• Director General of the Civil Service,
• Commissioner of Labour,
• Solicitor General,
• Deputy Managing Director of Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Limited and the Royal Brunei Airlines Sendirian Berhad, (Private Sector's Representatives); and
• Managing Director of the Employees Trust Fund, TAP as the Ex-Officio member.

(Adapted from RTB News, 24th May 2010)

Titah KDYMM di 6th WIEF, Kuala Lumpur

Special Address by

His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah,

Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam

At The

6th World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF)

19th May 2010

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

Image (c) Infofoto 2010

Prime Minister Dato' Sri Mohd Najid Tun Razak,

Your Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to be here and I thank the Foundation for the honour of addressing such a distinguished gathering of leaders in all walks of life. It is also a special pleasure to join fellow members of the OIC again and discuss matters that are of deep importance, not just to our Muslim Ummah but, I believe, to all members of the international community.

It is a tribute to the role being played by our organisation in world affairs today and I congratulate every branch on its positive and constructive contribution to peace, goodwill and cooperation among all nations.

I also most warmly congratulate your government and people, Prime Minister. As we often say in Brunei Darussalam, we do not only have relations with Malaysia. We are relations. And, as such, we thank you once again for your country's welcome and your people's constant friendship and hospitality.

As members of the wider, extended family of Muslims nations, we greatly appreciate your outstanding support for the work of the OIC over so many years.

Prime Minister,

I have followed the work of the Forum with great interest ever since its first session. That was, of course, in 2005 the same year as our groundbreaking Special Summit in Mecca. I still see that Summit as one of the two most significant meetings in the first decade in the twenty first century.

The first was, of course, the United Nations Millennium Summit where the Millennium Development Goals were adopted. This, more than any previous set of principles, gave international purpose to the lives of every ordinary citizen in every country in the world.

The Plan of Action set out at Mecca Summit five years later, allied two billion of our people to the same international objective. And this Forum has given it inspiration and dynamic practical impetus in a most crucial area of modern international relations. As a result, I see the first ten years of this century not in terms of crises whether economic, financial or political.

I see them in the terms set out in the various themes which have been chosen for this annual gathering. New alliances... Partnerships... Security.

And I assess them in this light. How much, I ask, have our ordinary people's lives been improved? As individuals, as families and as communities, are they better prepared to meet modern challenges? How much more confident are they now in facing the future? If we can answer these questions positively, then we are indeed responding well to the theme of the Forum's very first meeting here in Kuala Lumpur in 2005 - Development and Progress.

Prime Minister,

In linking the purpose of the UN Millennium Goals the the objectives of the Mecca Summit and the work of the Secretariat here, I detect a further theme. I feel that it underpins almost every aspect of international life today. I see it as the sub-text of theme of each of our Forums over the past five years. At an even deeper level, I believe that it is one of the most serious concerns of all Muslims in this twenty first century. By this, I refer to what has been given the popular title of Globalisation.

The word is part of everyday life and almost everyone has his own interpretation. Some rejoice in it. Some regret it. Some even condemn it. What I think we all agree on here, however, is that it presents a clear challenge to Muslims. The challenge is implicit in this year's theme "Gearing for Economic Resurgence."

This I believe does not involve seeing how we can adjust or adapt our faith to a new set of realities. My people know only one reality. They see the one world they live in. They know the one faith they believe in. In other words, they are already globalised, just as Muslims have always been for nearly one and a half thousand years. As such, they wish to take part to the full in the one world they live in and they wish to strengthen the one faith they believe in. If we speak of "resurgence" here, then it is this wish I see resurging.

Prime Minister,

Our people have all felt the impact of many so-called economic and financial crises over the last two years. This, to me, is simple proof that we are inextricably bound up in world affairs. It is essential that our people must have the tools and skills to handle them well, as nations, as traders, as business men and women, as ordinary citizens of that world and as Muslims. That is why I thank the Forum for its ideas and the programmes of advice, training and opportunity it is offering and encouraging.

I would, however, make one other point about "resurgence". If it is to take place, we cannot afford to be passive members of the international community. We ourselves, as Muslims, have much to offer and encourage our partners in the world. The world, I maintain, needs us.

There have been many calls for commerce, trade, banking, and finance to be fair, honest, ethical and moral. Many non-Muslims, up to the highest authorities among the great powers at the United Nations, have made such calls. The word often used is "regulated". The words Muslims have always used are far less controversial. We use the terms "just" or simply "fair". As we all know here, these have always been Islam's values, its principles, and its basic approach to business. These, far more than any products, can be Islam's major contribution to international business.

Undertaking the long, hard task of building them into global economic and business affairs is, the highest calling of Islamic Forums such as this. It calls for persuasion, goodwill, technical skill and commerical expertise. It will obviously take much time, effort and conviction.

But, Prime Minister, if we are seeking a way out of short-term cycles of crisis and recovery, this is the surest way of achieving any lasting "resurgence"... not just for the Ummah... but for the whole world of business and economics.

Thank you.

retyped from His Majesty's Speech in PDF document available online at http://www.6thwief.org/300/assets/File/sultan_of_brunei.pdf

eSaving Switch Off & Set (SOS)

Images from http://www.esavingday.com/index.html

In conjunction with the Energy Day 2010 this May 24, the Energy Division of the Prime Minister's Office of Brunei Darussalam is organising an eSaving SOS (Switch Off & Set) Campaign.

From http://www.esavingday.com/sos.html

Three simple steps of SOS:

1) (S)witch (O)ff Unnecessary Lights

Only light the room that you are using and before you exit the room, simply switch the lights off. The less time you spend with the lights on, the more energy you save. A normal bulb will use 60 watts of energy an hour, meaning that you could conserve nearly 22,000 watts of energy per year by just switching off one bulb for one hour every day. That’s enough energy to power your television for a month. Also try to consider how many lights you need on, or if you need one on at all. If you know of a light that everyone forgets to turn off, make a sticker or a sign to hang next to the switch that says “Switch off”.

2) (S)witch (O)ff Water Heater When Not in Use

Is it necessary to keep the water heater on throughout the day when no one is using it? Another simple way to save energy and water is to take shorter hot showers. You will use less hot water - and water heaters account for nearly 1/4 of your home's energy use. Imagine the savings you could gain!

3) (S)et Your Air Conditioner Temperature to 24 degrees Celsius or at least 1 degree Celsius Higher than Usual

Whether you’ve got a central air conditioner or window Air-conditioning units, the right settings can help you maximise energy savings. The air conditioner’s thermostat should be set to a comfortable 24 degrees. Or you could gradually increase the temperature by 1 degree. Just a 1 degree higher setting could mean significant energy savings of 10%.

The campaign is not only limited to the above 3 electrical appliances (namely Light, Water Heater & Air Conditioner), it is wise to switch off unnecessary electrical appliances (e.g. set your computer to stand by or hibernate when not in use). This will not only lower your electric bill, but also lesser emission of greenhouse gases (CO2).

Join this Energy saving campaign (SOS) and pledge online at http://www.esavingday.com/pledging.html . Personally, I think this should be a daily practice, not only on 24th May because we have only ONE mother earth. We must minimise the harm to her for the sake of our future generations.