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Brunei & Poland establish bilateral defence ties BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News » Brunei - New 2 Borneo

Brunei & Poland establish bilateral defence ties

Posted: 05 Dec 2013 05:54 PM PST

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The Government of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam as represented by the Ministry of Defence and the Minister of National Defence, the Republic of Poland, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) concerning the development of mutual defence relations between the two countries, according to a press release from the Ministry of Defence (MinDef), Borneo Bulletin reported.

The signing ceremony was held at the BRIDEX Conference Hall.

Signing on behalf of His Majesty's Government was Colonel (Rtd) Pg Dato Paduka Hj Azmansham bin Pg Hj Mohamad, Permanent Secretary (Defence Policy and Development) at the Ministry of Defence, while the Minister of National Defence of the Republic of Poland was represented by Robert Kupiecki, the Under-Secretary of State for Defence Policy at Poland's Ministry of National Defence.

Under the MoU, Brunei and Poland are committed to developing and boosting cooperation through trainings, procurements, exchanges of visits and information-sharing on matters pertaining to both defence establishments.

It is a significant milestone reflecting both parties' willingness to foster and broaden defence cooperation in mutually beneficial areas.

Witnessing the signing was Dato Paduka Hj Mustappa bin Hj Sirat, the Deputy Minister of Defence, and Boguslaw Winid, the Under-Secretary of State for Security Policy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Poland.

Also present at the ceremony were the Defence Executive Committee and senior officials from the Ministry of Defence and members accompanied by the Polish delegation to BRIDEX.

Prior to the signing, Robert and Boguslaw with the Polish delegates paid a courtesy call to Dato Paduka Hj Mustappa and the Defence Executive Committee members.

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PWD manual to increase quality control in constriction industry

Posted: 03 Dec 2013 03:58 PM PST

by James Kon. Posted on December 4, 2013, Wednesday

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: In a bid to raise quality control in the construction industry, Minister of Development, Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Suyoi bin Hj Osman yesterday proposed that the Public Works Department (PWD) Quality Supervision Manual be made into a system that reaps benefits not only for various government agencies, but also serves as an industry standard in the country, Borneo Bulletin reported.

In the system, marks will be given to each construction project according to the standard and specification. The marks will also be used in the process of tender assessment. Through this approach, it is hoped quality standard and productivity in the construction industry will increase.

The minister noted this in his capacity as guest of honour during the launch of the PWD Quality Supervision Manual Edition 2013, which aims to provide a structured supervision system for quality construction and to strengthen the skills of supervisors.

"Quality standard for buildings should long have been established. With the rising cost of construction, the need for energy efficient buildings and the maintenance work given less attention, it is sensible for us to work toward upgrading the quality of our building to avoid the cost of repair and maintenance work," he said.

Listing unskilful site supervisors as one of the main reasons behind flawed and unsatisfactory quality of buildings, he said the ministry is carrying out efforts to raise the quality of work by improving quality control.

An inspection is ordinarily carried out by site supervisors who play a vital role in making sure the quality of construction is guaranteed. I understand that site supervisors in the Public Works Department comprise engineers, architects, supervisors, tradesman, labourers and foremen. In 2011, it was found that in the Public Works Department, 62 per cent of the workforce that overlooked construction work were individuals with low qualifications or being not from a technical background. This has limited the ability on assessment making."

The PWD Quality Supervision Manual Edition 2013, the minister said, "can be a guideline in identifying what needs to be inspected, how to inspect and when to inspect. By assessing the contractor's work, indirectly we can improve the quality and productivity of the construction industry in the country".

Citing Singapore as a good example, the minister highlighted, "As an effort to raise the capabilities of site supervisors, a national certificate in construction supervision programme was introduced in 1987 to train site supervisors. In 1989, the Government of Singapore also introduced a system, named Construction Quality Assessment System (CONQUAS), to assess construction quality."

The first PWD Site Supervisor Manual was published in 2006 by the Department of Building Services to be used by employees as guidance and reference in performing their tasks as site supervisors.

PWD has taken steps to review the existing manual so that it is up to date according to current practices. Among the objectives are to ensure contractors follow and understand the content of the construction work, drawing and specifications; ensure quality control; monitor the progress of the project; to report and ensure problems are resolved timely; and in long-term as a tool to ascertain the building quality and consequent asset value.

Also present at the ceremony were Permanent Secretary (Technical and Professional) at the Ministry of Development, Dato Paduka Haji Suhaimi bin Hj Gafar; Permanent Secretary (Administration and Finance) at the Ministry of Development, Hj Muhammad Lutfi bin Hj Abdullah and Director-General of Public Works Department, Hj Marzuke bin Hj Mohsin.

The PWD Quality Supervision Manual Edition 2013 has been distributed to various departments under the ministry.

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His majesty officiates passing out parade for PKBN’s first intake

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 07:30 PM PST

by Wani Roslan. Posted on December 3, 2013, Tuesday

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam yesterday consented to officiate the passing out parade ceremony for the first intake of the National Service Programme (PKBN) at the PKBN training camp field, Sports Complex in Berakas, Borneo Bulletin reported.

His Majesty was greeted upon arrival by the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Laila Diraja Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Hazair bin Haji Abdullah.

Also present were Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abd Rahman bin Haji Ibrahim, Minister of Finance II at the Prime Minister's Office; Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awang Haji Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar, Minister of Energy at the Prime Minister's Office; Datin Paduka Hajah Adina binti Othman, Deputy Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports; Dato Paduka Haji Mohd Hamid bin Haji Mohd Jaafar and Haji Mohd Rozan bin Dato Paduka Haji Mohd Yunos, Permanent Secretaries at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.

His Majesty was accorded the royal salute followed by the singing of the national anthem. The monarch then consented to inspect the guard of honour comprising 125 trainees (92 male and 33 female) of the first PKBN intake.

Following the inspection, the parade proceeded with a slow and fast march past before returning to position.

The passing out parade ceremony then continued with His Majesty's titah followed by awards presentation by the monarch to Best Overall Trainee for Male, 10088 Mohd Said Nazrul bin Haji Mohd Salleh and Overall Best Trainee for Female, 10101 Mahanie binti Idris. The awards for Best Parade Trainee for Male went to 10131 Muhammad Mu'iz bin Haji Mohin and Best Parade Trainee for Female went to 10141 Nur Hamizah binti Hasmadi. Awards for Best Male Trainee in Physical Training went to 10057 Md Jazli bin Ahmad and Best Female Trainee in Physical Training went to 10099 Nur Liyana binti Mohammad Zini.

Following the awards presentation, His Majesty received three chants of 'Daulat' from the parade and continued with a recitation of a Doa Selamat.

His Majesty once again received the royal salute and the parade ended with the singing of the national anthem.

From the PKBN field, His Majesty proceeded to PKBN training camp at the Sports Village to view an exhibition on three PKBN pilot projects – archery, module on personality development, entrepreneurship module and module of motivation.

His Majesty then proceeded to a "santap" with the award recipients and later consented to sign the royal parchment in commemoration of the visit and received a 'pesambah' from the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports.

Before leaving, His Majesty consented to mingle with the trainees and their families which then concluded with a group photo.

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Fatal accident in Sungai Liang

Posted: 01 Dec 2013 04:44 PM PST

KUALA BELAIT: A road accident which happened in the early hours of Sunday claimed the life of a local motorist. The incident occurred in the vicinity of the traffic junction of SPARK in Sungai Liang and involved two vehicles, Borneo Bulletin reported.

According to the Royal Brunei Police Force (RBPF), they received a call about the incident at 6.30am, while the Sungai Liang Fire Station received a call at 6.39am from the Berakas Fire and Rescue Operations Centre.

Four personnel led by Deputy Station Officer Awg Azami bin Haji Ali were dispatched to the scene.

The driver, a local man, was found trapped in his seat as the accident caused the metal road dividers to pierce through the victim's car. Fire and Rescue personnel took three minutes to extricate the victim from the wreckage before he was rushed to Suri Seri Begawan Hospital, Kuala Belait.

Efforts to save his life went in vain as the man died six hours later at the hospital according to police.

A source said the driver and passengers of the other vehicle were safe. The cause of the accident is still being investigated by the police.

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His Majesty, PM Najib to open Sungai Pandaruan bridge December 8

Posted: 01 Dec 2013 01:11 AM PST

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The 200-metre-long toll-free bridge across Sungai Pandaruan will be officially opened by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam and Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Dec 8, 2013, Borneo  Bulletin reported.

Malaysian Works Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof told Bernama yesterday about the opening after visiting the Malaysia and Brunei bridge project yesterday accompanied by Brunei's Minister of Communications, Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Hj Bakar.

On another development, Datuk Fadillah said the government had yet to decide whether to revive the road project that would link Sabah to Sarawak that would bypass Brunei.

"This involves the views of everyone including Brunei and should result in a win-win situation for everyone if it were to be implemented," he said.

Previously, the government had planned to implement a Brunei bypass project in the Ninth Malaysia Plan with the construction of a 260-kilometre alternative route costing RM1 billion but to date, it was still delayed due to technical problems.

Currently, the people of Sabah and Sarawak wishing to visit either state by land must go through Brunei which requires the driver to go through seven immigration and customs posts in both countries.

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