What they say is TRUE .....

RIP After Surgery, our major hospital has always been been the butt of jokes of our people whenever people hear they are admitted to the hospital. Whenever someone dear to us have medical problems and seek attention, they always dread the thought of going to the hospital.

This show the level of unease among the public regarding the quality of the health care system in Brunei Darussalam. One angry citizen who was angry with the level of service provided at the Emergency Section of the RIPAS hospital said that, what's the use of having a New Minister, a New Deputy Minister post, a new Permanent Secretary and a newly styled CEO when all these people who do not know anything about the management of health care system, dont know how and never change the system of how people work there. If the problem is the lack of manpower - then all these important posts should probably be reduced, so as to pay for the necessary staff and equipment that are most urgently needed in an Emergency Room and other important areas of health care.

One would never know about the situation of the Emergency Room if one never feel the urgency to go, whenball other options are not available.

And this is what happened recently to a close relative.

Because of the reputation of RIPAS Emergency Room, a relative who suffer a real emergency situation went to all the private clinics in Gadong, Kiulap area before finally a recommendation at JPMC to go to RIPAS Emergency Room was advice. There was no choice, as doctors were not available to attend. This was on a Saturday night, after 8pm when all private clinics were closed.

No choice and with the feeling of dread, the cousin went and sure enough, whatever that was written/complained about the hospital was true.

a) Despite having a letter of recommendation from JPMC to seek immediate medical attention as certain part of the body was still bleeding, the patient has to wait for 45minutes before a doctor was seen.

b) One would assume that with the big numbers labels above the doors of the Emergency Room, its all the rooms where doctors see their patients. Wrong... some of it are store rooms and god knows, how many doctors are actually working to look at patients' medical problems.

c) The doctor doesn't seemed to know where are the functioning equipment as a particular equipment were search from one room to another room before finding a working equipment in another doctor's room.

d) There was cat which was walking around the Emergency Room and no one seemed to bother to move the cat elsewhere. The sight of the cat, undoubtly shocked an outsider who would assume that all hospitals should be clean and no animals running around in such as sensitive area.

e)What time does the shift change for the staff? One would assume that if its 10am, the staff would at least arrived 5minutes before the actual shift starts. But not in the Emergency Room. One important staff was late for more than 20minutes. Who is that VIP staff? The person who wrote and gets the $1 charge!

Without this person, no one would see the doctor since they are not registered yet.

Kalau orang kan mati, mati sudah bah, kalau kan menunggu for this stupid staff - its a bloody disgrace to have someone who have no proper working ethics working in such an important and sensitive area and dont care about the health of the patients. Dont give excuse that its the doctors' job that ensure who gets treatment, most of the time, IN BRUNEI, its always the frontline incompentence who can decide the life and death of a person!

f) It is very disturbing to see that there were so many doctors who were just standing and not seeeing patients. Who are the people in greens and blues??? If they are not doctors, then what the heck are they doing in the Emergency Room? There were so many patients in the Emergency Room and yet there are these people who SEEMED to be just waiting and chatting at the counter.

g) Why is our Govt not spending enough money in giving the nation's hospital proper equipment and services? It was really distressing, dissapointing and outrage to see how the Emergency Room operate. At the back of the mind, one would always think that "no one would survive if they are pushed into the Emergency Room if one have a major injury" and the fact staff and doctors seemed to act like the normal staff - do things slowly... ITs not like ER, Chicago Hope kind of service ... very very far from it.

h) To people higher up, if you're reading this, please do something about our failing health care system. Important issues in health care such as medicines, emergency staff competence in dealing with patients and doctors speciality must be taken into upmost consideration as these are the areas that Brunei needs to improve. This issue is a 20 years old issue, but since there's a new management team already, then they should know or try to solve this problem...

I strongly suggest that all future staff who are working in hospitals be given contracts when working and NOT to accept as permanent staff who cannot be sack. This is to ensure that these type of people knows their important responsibility to the people who seek medical attention and if they CANT or REFUSE to perform as they should, then they can be sack from their job. This is especially true for the person manning the PAYMENT counter! Remember, there are thousands of people who are without jobs in this country, and Im sure they would be glad to fill in the shoes of the person manning the payment counter!

It may not happen to you now, but in future, if it happened to you or any of your close relatives, then you will know the anger and frusturations one have when dealing with the Emergency Service of RIPAS.

Sites & Scenes of Tutong District

A trip down to Tutong District using the old road brings back old memories...

I remember passing by the Sinaut Agriculture Centre, now the "Standard Centre", and we assume that we are already in Tutong District.. Then passing by the Tutong Town to the tamu, where every Thursday there's a big market. In the area of the market there's a small kedai makan managed by this Haji, which is well know for its Soto... the protion maybe quite small but hey, the meat (beef) they add on was a lot... Last time, there was a Chinese who operated next to the Haji stall and God Knows who go and erect a big wall to separate the muslim and non-muslims eaters. Now the Chinese operator has left and the wall taken away and only the Haji's business is still running.

If one go to the Seri Kenangan Beach, one would pass by the old "palace" of the late Begawan Sultan who visited his subjects in Tutong District and stayed at the "palace". The name of the "palace" is Istana Pantai, and its a shame that that palace is not being made into a museum of some sort. If it is made into a museum, at least the building will be preserved and well-maintained... (come to think of it, if Sultan Hashim's palace was in Kg. Ayer, where is Sultan Muhammad Jamalul Alam's palace? Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin's palace was the present headoffice of Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah while the old palace of late Begawan is in Kg. Sumbiling).

Seri Kenangan Beach is interesting beach, as it is a strip of land, with the north facing South China Sea and at the back is where the mangrove forest thrive, the Tutong River. Its quite a unique geography.

Then before reaching Seria town, one always pass by the famous pasir-putih of Tutong District and previously that indicates that you're half-way through your journey from Bandar...

I didnt managed to go to the Tasek Merimbun yet, I heard the road is still as bad as before.. will invistigate that in the next few days if not busy... :)

The New & Huge Tutong District Tamu...

The new tutong Tamu...

Who is the architect of the building and why is the building design like that? So Minangkabau-ish... are the designers keturunan Minangkabau kah?... hehehhe

Dinner with Family tonight

a) blackpepper honey & hp sauce Chix,
b) fried chix
c) corn soup
d) asparagous + baby kailan
e) fish - 2 types - entah, duno whats the name

$3.50 Lunch... Chix Sandwich

From the menu of a new restaurant in Sengkurong, the picture of this dish look so big... but after I ordered it, it's not what the picture display (hey, what else is new right)... imagine, 3 slice of bread and cut it into 4 triangle shape... and wala.. you get food as seen here ...

The chix sandwich served at T.T Blues, Gadong is bigger and costs just $5 and you can even taste the chicken...

Dinner In Miri....

Why can't Brunei has something like this? Beachside seafood restaurant? The Jerudong beach or the Tungku beach is an ideal spot...

Seria Old Tamu

This "tamu" will possible be demolished after the completion of the new Seria Pasar, located in the middle of the Seria Town, where the old Pasar used to be. Hence, people who are interested in history, should take pictures of the historical places soon as many building will be demolish to make way for new and modern buildings to be built.



The $1.50 Kuea Tiaw found at the old Seria "tamu". There's no where else you can get a $1.50 Kuea Tiaw in Brunei, as operation costs at the stall is small. The protion is quite a lot, with egg and chicken meat... its a good deal. Hope when they moved to the new building, the price will be maintained...

Ong Sum Ping (Huang Senping)

Huang Senping, better known as Ong Sum Ping, Pengiran Maharaja Lela Sahibul Kahar of Sultanate of Brunei. He was said to arrive in Brunei in 1375.

There are several stories about Ong Sum Ping.
a) That he was a Ming Prince of China
b) That he was actually Sultan Ahmad, after marrying Sultan Mohammad's daughter, Puteri Ratna Devi
c) That his sister married Sultan Ahmad (Pateh Berbai), and their daughter, Princess Ratna Kesuma, married Sharif Ali who became Sultan Sharif Ali, 3rd Sultan of Brunei




An interesting wesbite, no doubt a lot of time spent creating this family tree:
http://www.geocities.com/bx_huang/famous_huangs.html

Chung Hwa "Middle" School

Chung Hwa School, Bandar Seri Begawan, celebrated its 80th year anniversary (1923-2002) about 4 years ago. However, according to the anniversary book published in conjunction of the 80th year anniversary, the school was initially name York Choi School, opened in 1918 with just about 20 pupils.

The main aim of the establishment of the school was to educate the young children of the chinese shopkeepers who moved to the land (Brunei Town), from Kampong Ayer, several years before. History recorded that Kapitan China Ong Boon Pang (father of Dato Ong Kim Kee and grandfather of Timothy Ong?) was one of the main towkays who helped established the school...

Some Pictures of the Chinese Schools

Chung Ching School, Seria (Primary School)
The school was opened in 1938 with just 30 pupils. In December 1953, the school moved to a new building and was officially opened by Assistant Resident of Belait, MR. Jades. It costs $100,000 to built, and $25,000 was donated by British Malayan Petroleum Company, the rest from private donation. The Brunei government granted the land for the building of the school.


Chung Lian School, Sg. Liang, Belait District


Chung Ching Middle School, Seria

The worst beehoon mamak ever...

Its tasteless, no meat, and expensive for a normal noodle (bee hoon).

This dish is served in Gadong, at a quite well-known "local" restaurant... never again..

Brunei business

"Ali-baba" business is rampant in Brunei.

One estimate that only less than half of the businesses registered in Brunei, are active. Of these, majority are "Ali-Baba" business where local Malay "lend" their names to Indians and Chinese, who actually run the business. In other words, they are the sleeping partner. The advantage for them is, receiving either or both, a monthly "salary" or % of share in the business.

This seemed to be the accepted practice in Brunei. The Government policy has always been giving preference to "bumis" in businesses in order to make the Malays more entrepeneurial. One can look at this as one of the ways to become entrepeneurial - getting $$ for doing nothing. Hey, that's good business isn't?

At the end of the day, is this what the higher authorities wanted? A society whose mentality is to depend on others to do things for them? Despite the rhtoric that Bruneians should develop SMEs, etc., etc.,... in the end, they still depended on the others to do the job. Why do co-operatives failed... it's because the "indian mafia" who run their business non-stop from morning to the next morning - screamed a quite well-known but discredited 1960s government scholar to the UK... hmm... sounds like the Mat Salleh who want to close their shops early so that they could go to the pubs later in the evening...

Kalau diaorang rajin, so macam mana tah? Even nasi katok is everywhere because there's demand for it... and who is manning these nasi katok - Indonesians, of course, so who's blame???

national flag

National Day, 23rd February 2006 Grand Finale

The Brunei Flag

Yellow = The Sultan of Brunei's personal colour
White = Pengiran Bendahara's - then the First Minister, white which connote integrity, purity and sincerity
Black = Pengiran Pemancha's - then the Second Minister, black colour which connote authority, firmness and irrevaocubility

The reason the colours of the Pengiran DiGadong (Green) and Pengiran Temenggong (Red) was not included in the national flag was that when the flag was designed (gotta check when it was designed), both Pengirans had passed away at that time and now new Pengiran was installed to that post.

The office of Pengiran Temenggong remained vacant until 1967. The previous Pg. Temenggong became Sultan Hashim, son of Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin II. In order to support his claim to the throne, he sought help from Sir Charles Brooke of Sarawak and signed an agreement in 1884 where Trusan District was to be transfered to Sarawak in return for the Rajah's support.

The office of Pengiran DiGadong remained vacant from 1900 (after the death of Pg. DiGadong Muhammad Hassan, nephew of Sultan Abdul Mubin) until 1968.

Brunei was said to be too poor to finance the offices of these two important position in the early 20th century.

Chinese Schools in Brunei

There are 8 Chinese Schools in Brunei:

a) Ching Hwa Middle School, Bandar Seri Begawan
b) Chung Ching Middle School, Kuala Belait
c) Chung Hua Secondary School, Kuala Belait
d) Chung Hwa School, Labi
e) Chung Lian School, Sg. Liang
f) Chung Hwa School, Pekan Tutong
g) Chung Hwa School, Kiudang in Lamunin, Tutong
h) Pai Yuek School, Temburong

There are 7 "mission" schools in Brunei:

a) St. Andrews, BSB
b) St. George's, BSB
c) St. Angela's, Seria
d) St. John, KB
e) St. James, KB
f) St. Margaret, KB
g) ST. Michael, KB

Source: MOE website

Note: Can anyone provide the date of establishment of the schools & who are the founding "fathers" of the schools? It really would be a great help. Thanks!

Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied

How many of you have heard of cases – civil cases – that are yet to be mentioned in the court? I’m sure your friends or relatives would have that problem. You would have heard of traffic accident cases which take years to settle… and what are the reasons for that? I dont work in the court, so I don’t know what the problems are. But physically, you can see the "problems" which are yet to be solved.

The air-condition system was fixed and turn on after several months of breakdown. His Majesty had to personally go there, and only then the problem was fixed. How about the problem of interpreters? Some interpreters don’t even know the exact translation of a particular word and some don’t tell the whole sentence of what were actually said. Can misinterpretation leads to miscarriage of justice?

Why do magistrates/judges have to do the writing of the court proceedings themselves? It’s scandalous at this time and age. We are already in the 21st century and yet, our judges have to become their own "reporter"…. No wonder there’s backlog of cases yet to be completed. Time is wasted just because our court couldn’t employ a stenographer … (people in PSD, if you’re reading this, do something about it and we need more than one stenographer!)

Why haven’t the relevant agencies see the need for efficient and effective court system?

The court earns several million dollars from the fines/stamps and its only right that some of the money should be given back to the court to make sure that it can run smoothly - hence get more "income" from the public who breaks the law.

Why can’t Brunei learn from Singapore court system which is known for its efficient and effectiveness? Some magistrates do not like the comparison but one can’t help but look at the inefficient court system that we have. We cannot use the cultural excuse all the time to blame our lack of efficiency. Until when will it end?

With the long delay, how can people remember events which happened many years ago??? My friend's insurance company "lost" or "misplace" his accident report, so what will happen to my friend's case in the court?? Witnesses can migrate, leave the country if they are foreigners and some can even die, if cases are too long to be brought to the court of justice. Is our magistrates allowed to be tough on both the prosecution and defendents so that they do not waste the magistrates time?

A new magistrates’ court is now completed, will it mean less cases delayed as there are more rooms, hence magistrates (?) presiding in the court? Not likely… there are several years of backlog cases that had to be cleared first, and that can take several years to clear as well....? – hehhe

Best Restaurants (part 2)

1) Hot and Spicy chicken - Used to be the Mengalait You Mei, now duno where the cook go.. the best alternative is the Seafood Restaurant, Jalan Muara

2) Egg Tart - Dynasty - man, it's great if its serve hot!! sampai "angus" lidah atu... haha

3) Yam Basket - Seri Kemayan Restaurant, Bowling centre... (the best food/restaurant served for Chinese wedding reception - well, ambience-wise, some rich folkes dont think it up to their standard, so dont want to held their sons' or daughters' wedding reception there - maximum capacity is just about 320 people)

4) Shark fin soup - Seri Kemayan Restaurant - hey, at least you can see the Shark Fin compared to other restaurants (note: can you see the shark fin in the shark fin dumpling served at Dynasty??)

5) Best Burger - Express Jumbo Burger - the chicken burger is nice and its soooo huge!

6) Best Roasted Chicken - Ideal - which reminds me, when are they (Ideal restaurants) going regional.... their food is great!

7) Best Spagetti - Ideal!!! (once, in a week, i ate it 4 times - my other half complained but hey, i just realise how good it was coz before this i never touch spagetti before! Sakai, i know) - ok, gimme me a break, i duno how to spell that...

8) Best Bakery Shop - Mum's Bakery, Kiulap - love the Vanilla Cocktail cake - and why do they always charge you extra if you want that cake to be in proper round, square or rectangle shape???

"Ciri" given to Chinese

Among the "ciri" title (something like a "Lord" title in the British monarchy) given by the Sultan of Brunei to his loyal Chinese subjects are:

Pehin Datu Temanggong
Pehin Datu Bandahari China Bandar, Bandar Seri Begawan
Pehin Kapitan China Kornia Diraja
Pehin Kapitan Lela Diraja
Pehin Bendahari China Kornia Diraja
Pehin Bendahari China

Dato Paduka Lim Jock Seng, then Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, made history for Chinese Bruneians when he was granted the title,

Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Dewa

part of the 32 Manteri level in the traditional hierarchy of the Bruneian society. It is believed that so far, no Chinese has ever been elevated to this traditional hierarchical status. The list above is under the Manteri Dagang category meaning it is below the Manteri 32 level (basically Manteri Dagang category serve those in Manteri 32 level...)

Pehin Lim, made another history when he was appointed as the first ethnic Chinese Bruneian, to a full Cabinet Minister post, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade (II) in 2005.

Princess Masna visited ancient Brunei King tomb

Bruneian Princess pays homage to tomb of ancient Bruneian king in China

Brunei Princess Hajah Masna paid homage to the tomb of an ancient Bruneian king in Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province on Thursday.

Masna and her party visited the cemetery of the king of ancient Boni Kingdom (present-day Brunei) Thursday morning, accompanied by senior Chinese diplomats.

The Princess also unveiled a China-Brunei friendship memorial there and donated gifts to it.

According to historical records, the king of Boni Kingdom led a 150-member delegation to China for a friendly visit in August 1408 following Zheng He, an ancient Chinese navigator.

Unfortunately, he died in Nanjing and his remains were buried in the southern suburb in accordance with his last words. Zheng He, a Chinese navigator in the Ming Dynasty, traveled to southeast Asia, west Asia and east Africa on seven occasions between 1405 and 1433 with large fleets. In the years of Zheng's voyage, at least 11 heads of ancient kingdoms, including the king of Boni Kingdom, visited China.

Source: Xinhua News Agency, April 7th 2006.

-----------------------------------------------------

Jiangsu province in the People's Republic of China yesterday opened the China-Brunei Friendship Hall, an exhibition hall of Bruneian Culture and Heritage, situated in the Brunei Heritage Garden.

Her Royal Highness Princess Hajah Masna, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, officiated the opening ceremony of the Friendship Hall. Her Royal Highness is on an official visit to China.

The Garden is a historical site surrounding the tomb of an ancient Ruler of Brunei, Maharaja Karna, who died while visiting China in the 1400s.

In Her Royal Highness's speech to officiate the opening of the Friendship Hall, Her Royal Highness expressed appreciation to the Jiangsu people for their effort in restoring and maintaining the valuable historic site that signifies relations between Brunei and China. The Vice Mayor of Nanjing, Madam Xu Huiling, also delivered a speech. She welcomed Her Royal Highness to Nanjing and thanked Her Royal Highness for further strengthening the good relations between Brunei and China.

Throughout the official visit, Her Royal Highness is accompanied by her husband, Pengiran Lela Cheteria Sahibun Najabah Pengiran Anak Haji Abdul Aziz bin Pengiran Jaya Negara Pengiran Hj Abu Bakar.

Source: Borneo Bulletin, April 7th 2006. Boost for China-Brunei Ties.

-----------------------

wish they have picture of the place....

Did you know... (2)

The late Begawan and Raja Isteri had a baby boy, their 9th child, named Pg. Muda Ali Bolkiah Al-Mugerri, who passed away when he was still a baby in February 1958...

Brunei was to celebrate its Independence on 29th September 1965 as announced by the Legislative Council in 1960... this idea was shelved after the outbreak of the December 1962 Rebellion...

pic of the legislative council building

still constructing... they even made a retaining wall to make sure that the land where the building is located wouldnt give way (note that previously, the bottom of the hill was a natural lake... hope they really really strengthened the building's foundation...)

Did you know...

Way back in the 1950s-1960s, Brunei celebrated as part of the national holiday:

Good Friday,
Liberation Day (10th June)
Queen Elizabeth birthday, (9th June),
Constitutional Day (29th September),

The people of Kg. Sungai Kuyuk in Kg. Air, petitioned the district officer to change the name of the village to Kg. Sungai Pandan in 1960. ("Kuyuk" is the Bruneian word for "Dog")

Chinese In Brunei

I'm interested to do a research on the Chinese people in Brunei. Anyone who knows the history, do drop me a line and if possible, I would like to contact that person for further information.

Thanks!

True or not?
Mr. Chua Chong Hee, described as a Chinese Baba who lived during the reign of Sultan Abdul Mumin, designed the engraved national crest on the Pitis coins.
- taken from Sejarah Rinkas Panji-Panji Negeri Brunei (1972), written by Abdul Latif Hj Ibrahim. Brunei Museum

"Cheng Meng"

Cheng Meng is the chinese tradition of cleaning and making offerings to ancestors' graves. This year, Cheng Meng, falls on the 5th of April 2006. Usually chinese families either go before or after the actual date... The elderly also say that the weather during this time will be quite rainy, for the next 10days or so, as it is a "sad" day of remembrance...

My family prayed at my great-grandparents and grandparents graves last Friday and because my brothers were not in the country, we havent been to my father's grave yet... promise to go tomorrow, Sunday.

I remembered that about 2 years ago during Cheng Meng itself, my father's grave was vandalised by unknown people. We suspected someone, but because we have no proof, we could not accuse anyone. My mum thought that it was done by someone who she didnt gave the job of making the "hong sui" or the grave, hence once the grave was completed by my late father's friend, that person got jealous and trash my father's grave.

We were all quite upset when we saw it and even friends came over to pray and give offering at my father's grave... knowing my father, who is a gentle and kind person thoughout his life, he would probably forgive the person who vandalise his grave but I'm not sure if the children inherited his peaceful and tolerant ways ....

I was shocked to know that my 52years old cousin passed away last Wednesday and the family didnt know about it until his entombment which was held yesterday... May his soul rest in peace...

restaurants

Best In Brunei

Japanese Food - Escapade Restaurant
Nasi Katok - Located along Jalan Lambak
Tim Sum (steam) - Dynasty
Tim Sum (baked, fried) - Phungmun (Fu Man Lo?), Teck Guan Plaza
Chili Crab - Seafood Restaurant, Jalan Muara
Buttermilk Chicken - Hai Wai Tian, Gadong
Butter Chicken/Prawns - Seafood Restaurant, Hai Wai Tian, Gadong

lunch today

Just now had late lunch in Gadong, to the so-called "Seria" Keow Tiaw... it's a quite well-known eating place here in Brunei, for the low budget chinese people (but then again, you'd be surprise to see rich Chinese businessmen who hang out there as well)... its just near to the famous kopi-tiam in Brunei, Gin Chew (the famous hot bun kopi-tiam, serve hot at 2pm, 3pm and 3.30pm and where by 3pm the whole restaurant will be populated by the Brunei civil servants)

one fried keow tiaw costs about B$2.50 (chix or beef, n egg) but duno why today I think they overcharge me and hubby by 50cents (I didnt order that extra egg this time, lady) .... if in Seria town itself, the fried keow tiaw at the Old Pasar (market) will cost only $2 per plate...

anyways, the Gadong place is getting well-known by the Malay community ... i was surprise to see my malay friends eating there (although the shop serve no pork) but you know... being in "chinese" restaurant, some radical would jump up and down and create hovac if they knew... if people get tired of eating the hot bun at Gin Chew, they can just walk across the road and eat the fried noodles...

vacation in singapore (February/March)

Hey... finally successful in creating this blog... hmm... now what do I do with it... well, as a first timer, lets try putting up some pictures from my recent vacation in Singapore...

My hubby and I went to visit Sentosa Island... (never going on that cable car again... my hubby was obviously having fun on it while i was so scared... it was windy and the cable car swinging - really must stop watching Air Crash Investigation on National Geographic Channel)

I was surprise to see the condition of the "resort" island... I think Brunei beaches are far more beautiful than what they have there...i.e. you can see several huge ships in the sea (the thing that came into my mind is - how clean is the water? how sure are the authorities that docking ships are not going to throw their dirty water/oil into the singapore sea?)...

we nearly got lost in the jungle (!) in Sentosa. We thought it would be fun to walk to our hotel (instead of using the bus) and enjoy the scenery... never again... we got spooked by the fact that there were only the two of us in the forest, and it was getting dark... I was nearly freaking out when we finally saw a road at the end of the pathway... Lesson Learned: should have taken the free blue bus!

there wasnt anything much to see in the island .... had to eat Burger King at night and the only thing worth to see there is the light show (forgot what they named it).. the magical fountain...

I guess, with the Integrated Resort + casino to be build in the next few years, Sentosa Island will definately be a great place to visit....