It’s a December to remember for beauty addicts and lovers of luxury beauty brand L’Occitane. From 1st until 31st December 2016, Baiduri Bank is offering great rewards and savings for customers who use their Baiduri Credit and Debit Card for their purchases in their Mabohai outlet.

With a storewide minimum purchase of BND80 nett, customers enjoy a 15% off from the total bill. On top of this fabulous discount, customers receive a free gift as well as a complimentary L’Occitane VIP membership.

The L’Occitane VIP membership avails members to special benefits and privileges such as birthday vouchers, reward points as well as exclusive VIP days, offers and promotions.

Terms and conditions of the promotion can be viewed on Baiduri Bank website at www.baiduri.com under the Promotions section, or on the Baiduri Bank mobile app – Baiduri Deals. For more information, customers may also contact the Baiduri Bank Customer Helpline at 2449666.

To be in the know of Baiduri Bank current promotions and events, the public can also like the official Baiduri Bank Group Facebook page or follow @baiduribank on Instagram and Twitter.

The group photo. Click image to enlarge.

Last week, more than 50 HEP teachers involved in Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam’s (BIBD) Advocating Life-Long Learning for An Aspiring Future (ALAF) programme recently attended an appreciation night event organised by the Bank. The event was held to recognise the contributions of ALAF Student Welfare Teachers in supporting the primary and secondary education of young underprivileged Bruneians.

Also present at the event was the Director General of Education, Yang Mulia Hj Abd Rahim bin Derus, and Director of Islamic Studies, Yang Mulia Ustazah Hajah Hajijah binti Haji Moktal, and senior leaders from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Religious Affairs and BIBD.

Speaking after the Doa recital to bless the event, BIBD Head of Government Relations and Special Projects, who was also guest of honour, Hj Minorhadi bin Hj Mirhassan said, “Behind the success of each ALAF student is the dedication of ALAF Student Welfare teachers.”

“Together with the unwavering commitment of our teachers, BIBD will continue to support the expansion of the ALAF programme, in line with His Majesty’s Vision 2035 to develop a holistic society that is highly educated and skilled.” Hj Minorhadi presented awards, including commemorative plaques and cash rewards, to recognise the contributions of teachers who have gone above and beyond their current responsibilities in support of ALAF students.

The ALAF Excellence Award 2016 was presented to Cikgu Yahuda Bin Gelawat, Cikgu Siti Muti’ah Bte Ali Umar, Ustazah Yasmin Hannani Bte Hj Abd Majid and Ustazah Dk Siti Nurul Ihsan Bte Pg Mohd Sahar. Cikgu Hjh Nur Humaira Qistina Maisarah Bte Hj Abd Rahman and Ustazah Hajah Shukrinah Bte Haji Ibrahim received the Special Mention ALAF Excellence Award 2016, while four retired ALAF Taskforce members were presented with the Special Mention ALAF Service Award 2016. In addition, all invited HEP teachers received a certificate of appreciation, in recognition of their dedication.

With the support of dedicated teachers, 7 ALAF students have scored 5A’s in their PSR examinations in 2015, and the Bank looks forward to supporting more deserving students in the future.

To find out more about BIBD’s ALAF programme and how you can make a difference, visit http://www.bibdalaf.com

Hj Minorhadi bin Hj Mirhassan, BIBD Head of Government Relations and Special Projects, in his welcoming remarks

Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Anak Abdul Rashid bin Pengiran Kerma Raja Pengiran Haji Kamarulzaman (2nd from left) with Che Soon Chong, Danial Isa Kalebic, the partner and manager of The Potato Habit and Benny Lau at the soft launch of The Potato Habit yesterday

YB Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Bakti Diraja Dato Laila Utama Haji Awang Isa bin Pehin Datu Perdana Manteri Dato Laila Utama Haji Awang Ibrahim (far right side) with family members and friends came for the launch and blessed the ceremony with a prayer.

At first I thought it was an international franchise. But their family side is known for creating local brands when it comes to food & beverage. You all may be familiar with household names such as Fratini’s and Mr. Softy and they have been around to make their strong presence in Brunei Darussalam. Now comes a new F&B brand called The Potato Habit.

Led by a young dynamic team came up with the concept and the idea came when they were flying abroad. After some sampling, they came up with 6 flavours as their first phase of the menu. The flavours are Original Cheese, Cheese and Butter, Spicy BBQ, Seaweed, Sour Cream & Onion and Sweet corn. Apparently according to Danial, the most popular one off the menu is Seaweed.

My favourite is the BBQ flavour. The portions are quite generous too even for a Baby Size ($2). They have 5 sizes from Baby Size to Family Size ($6). So if you ask me, it’s a real steal.

Daniel shared how they are also planning for expansion in the near future (sometime in March/April 2017). As of today, he was happy with the responses even with the lack of promotion. The business has been operating for a week and yesterday was the official opening of The Potato Habit.

Present during the launch were Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Anak Abdul Rashid bin Pengiran Kerma Raja Pengiran Haji Kamarulzaman and YB Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Bakti Diraja Dato Laila Utama Haji Awang Isa bin Pehin Datu Perdana Manteri Dato Laila Utama Haji Awang Ibrahim, the grandfather of Danial Isa-Kalebic.

The Potato Habit is located at the ground floor of Times Square Shopping Centre, near Killiney Road. You can follow them on instagram @thepotatohabit or just search #flavouringyourworld to check them out. I highly recommend their fries as they are pretty addictive for some reason. Happy devouring 😀

The seaweed flavour is the most popular among the lot

My favourite among the lot – BBQ flavour

Aziz Idris of Borneo Bulletin wanted to leave but got addicted to the flavoured fries and ended up taking away some

Same went to Dean Kassim of Borneo Bulletin and he couldn’t get enough of them

We had two rounds of them 😀

I had to learn how to carry all six with two hands.. It is possible

Danial being interviewed by Aziz. Check the story out tomorrow in Borneo Bulletin.

A strong crowd yesterday at The Potato Habit.

Game On organisers with partners and the top 3 winners of the FIFA 17 tournament.

It has been a while.. A while that I got involved in playing football games on PS4. I only played FIFA 17 once so far and I know I’m not that great of a player. I was humiliated online when I was playing FIFA 16 last year and it stopped me from playing for a while *lol*

Anyway, it’s good to see the rise of FIFA tournaments (formerly PES tourneys) and it’s organised by Game.On (Brunei). It took place at Mabohai Shopping Complex and the grand prize was a PS4 Slim 500GB with a PS4 Stix Gift Voucher, $25 Progresif Postpaid Plan and a GAME ON t-shirt.

I only saw one familiar face and that was Md Alif Akmal Anbarie bin Mahmod who managed to reach the finals and finished runner-up. He has previously won a few of the tournaments that I hosted a few years ago. Hence it’s good to see him back in the game. He won himself 1 Huawei Y330 phone, $25 Progresif Postpaid Plan, PS4 STIX Gift Voucher and a GAME ON t-shirt.

The eventual winner was Adib bin Hj Sazali who grabbed the grand prize and the 3rd place went to Md YaoHanexam bin Amir Anuar who won himself one Huawei Y330, PS4 STIX Gift Voucher and a GAME ON t-shirt.

The event is supported by Mabohai Shopping Complex and the event partners were ETA Games @ Cineplex, Nitro Concepts, Burger King, Getit.com.bn, Dx Racer, The Letterbox and PS4 Stix.

Game mode time during the FIFA 17 tournament

Alif Akmal came runner up during the competition

The Consumer Affairs Division (CAD), formerly known as Price Control Division, of the Department of Economic Planning and Development (JPKE), Prime Minister’s Office announced the launch of the Pengguna Bijak/Smart Consumer mobile application for consumers.

The main aim and key function of the mobile application is to educate and empower users to be smart consumers by providing a platform to compare prices of goods of daily necessities while also providing information on the prices of goods listed under the Price Control Act, Chapter 142. It will also introduce users to consumer related laws and a platform for lodging complaints, and contains informative educational material on consumer protection and price control related matters.

The mobile application which is developed by a local company, DotRoot Technologies Sdn Bhd, is available for download at the iTunes App Store for iOS users and the Google Play Store for Android users.

Burger King Brunei, under the management of Sinofood Express, are partnering with Coca-Cola and The Milimewah Group of Companies to excite consumers in Brunei by offering unbeatable deals as part of their end year promotion campaign.

For a limited time from 28th November 2016 until 31st January 2017, customers will be able to enjoy $2.00 off their total bill if they spend $15.00 or more in any of the Burger King outlet. In order to be entitled for this discount, customers are required to purchase any range of Coca-Cola beverages displayed exclusively on the shelves in The Milimewah Group of Companies. One sticker will be awarded for each Coca-Cola beverage purchase at the The Milimewah Group of Companies. Customers can find the sticker at the Coca-Cola’s beverage packaging and they must present the sticker to redeem their discount at the Burger King outlets.

This is the first time Burger King has ever collaborated with The Milimewah Group of Companies and Coca-Cola and we are looking forward to collaborate again to offer more exciting and unique deals for our customers in Brunei.

For further updates on Burger King® Brunei, visit our Instagram page @burgerkingbrunei and Facebook at www.facebook.com/bkbrunei.

The registration area at the Brunei Job Fair last Monday

Many people have been wondering what DARe is. It stands for Darussalam Enterprise and it is a statutory body that aims to develop small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and it is an initiative created by The Energy and Industry Department at the Prime Minister’s Office.

The Brunei Job Fair 2016 had a tremendous response in the past three days. The first day itself was pretty challenging as there were many events coinciding at BRIDEX area – the job fair and a wedding event. There were even some speakers (slated for Sunday’s program) shied away from the long congested traffic. Last year there wasn’t a Brunei Job Fair so it’s back again organised by the Energy and Industries Department at the Prime Minister’s Office.

I missed the opening day but dropped by last Monday to check it out to study and observe. I would have expected that the numbers of job seekers will be high. Mind you that job seekers doesn’t really translate to unemployment as some of the jobseekers are also inclusive of those studying and being employed.

The numbers currently that are registered as unemployed and seeking for jobs are almost 11,000 and I’m not to sure if these figures prior to the Brunei Job Fair 2016. Nonetheless, the said figures that were quoted is definitely a wake up call and it could be a reflection of our economy.

For sure, the Oil and Gas industries haven’t been favourable due to the volatility of oil prices and some of the prominent O&G companies that are participating don’t have much options or vacancies for jobseekers. One that I know are only taking internship and another prominent company are looking for IT Executive. The other O&G company is only looking for those who are experienced in the specialized field. These companies used to have multiple opportunities for job seekers a few years ago. Now it’s a different story.

Constructions in Brunei is almost at a standstill. Two of my friends who are involved in construction shared the problems they are facing – No Projects. This would mean that the staff can be redundant in a long run if the situation persists and they will have no choice but to retrench.

The Brunei Times recently shut down its operation, laying of at least 150 staff which is not so much good news in Brunei with the current economic situation.

According to the Minister of Energy and Industry at the Prime Minister’s Office, Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awang Haji Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar, he aimed at reducing the unemployment by at at least 4,000 and this is the target that he won’t negotiate.

Let’s see how it goes in the next few months. The registered jobseekers ended with a number of 8,070 during the 3 day event.

The recent statistics during the Brunei Job Fair. I have feeling that are many unregistered jobseekers in Brunei that didn’t attend the Brunei Job Fair recently.

I bumped into my friend Billy Lim from the Investment Division, Ministry of Finance. He shared about this new huge project coming in 2017 (construction first) which is the Brunei Fertilizer Industries. This will be the first Brunei fertilizer manufacturing plant which will be located in Sg. Liang and it will also create hundreds of job opportunities. Another interesting prospect for Brunei.

The sample of the fertilizer and it’s not the usual fertilizer that I normally see

The scene at the Brunei Job Fair 2016 at BRIDEX

Zulhilmi of Total entertaining interested individuals

Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mustappa bin hj Sirat, the Minister of Communications accompanied by Mubashar Khokar, the Chairman of BETTER Sdn Bhd during the official launch of BETTER at Times Square yesterday

The Minister checking out a Volkswagen at the BETTER roadshow

A new term that the community will be familiar with and that is “user-ship” as quoted by Mubashar Khokar, the Chairman of BETTER Sdn Bhd, a new company that allows rental car services and it’s touted to be the biggest in Brunei Darussalam. The guest of honour was Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mustappa bin hj Sirat, the Minister of Communications who gracefully launched the newly automative rental/lease service by BETTER Sdn Bhd.

Even the Minister was impressed with BETTER, commenting on its impressive business model that offers reasonable prices for customers and very convenient. He also mentioned that the leasing option will be economical savvy since the car will depreciate in value after four years (of lease). He added that the target market such as large institutions, embassies, diplomatic missions, government departments with certain disposal policies and multinational companies, will benefit from this newly offered service.

During the welcoming remarks of Mubashar, he praised the hard work of Irwan and his team (of BETTER) for making the service possible for the residents of Brunei Darussalam. He shared how BETTER has a very unique business model and it’s a very strategic expansion for BIBD Group as it’s more than just a car-leasing and rental company in Brunei Darussalam.

He did have an interesting point when he highlighted the term user-ship than ownership as the idea is to educate the public the user-ship is more practical since cars depreciate in value in a long run. At BETTER, they want to provide a better deal to their customers by providing short and long term value for customers’ individual needs with flexibility.

I also love the idea that they even have an app for BETTER which has been highly praised for its interface and user friendliness. It’s available on both Google Playstore and IOS. You can even subscribe the BETTER plan on your app and deliver the car to your doorstep within 24 hours.

The other amazing deal from BETTER is that the prices are inclusive of insurance, road tax, servicing and many more. This is totally different to that of a hire purchase model where the car owner has to still fork out for servicing, insurance and road tax to begin with.

For more information about BETTER, do visit their roadshow at Times Square until the final day Sunday 4th December 2016. So far they are a few brands that have signed up with BETTER and they are KIA, Hyundai, Toyota, BWM, Audi and Volkswagen. You can also follow BETTER on their social media platform on Facebook and instagram @better.brunei

During the launch at Times Square yesterday

The Minister having a chat with Craig Allen, the US Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam

Check out the roadshow of BETTER at Times Square until this Sunday

The Minister checking out the BETTER app and he was quite impressed

Haji Azhar Hj Ahmad, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Communications, Dr. Hi Supry bin Hj Awang, Director of Land Transport and Irwan Lamit, the Managing Director of BIBD At-tamwil

The Minister handing out a token of appreciation to one of the first customers of BETTER

Yang Mulia Awang Mr Chang See Tang, Managing Director of Beesket Brunei Store in KBSentral handed out the the first prize to Pg Jamilah Pg Hassan

Studio Programming RTB KB Supervisor Dayang Naemah Awang handed out a consolation prize to Norashikin Ali who won a printer from Yappe

Sentral Shopping Centre has just completed its Monthly Lucky Draw for the month of November on Sunday, 27th November 2016 at 2.00 pm yesterday. With about 500 short-listed, Sentral Shopping Centre was filled with a huge crowd of hopeful winners but only 16 lucky ones were picked. The prizes range from household appliances to meal voucher to one night stay at Garden Sentral Hotel as well as a LG Brand 43 Inch LED TV for the first winner prize.

The Guest of Honor for the Grand Lucky Draw was Yang Mulia Awang Mr Chang See Tang, Managing Director of Beesket Brunei Store in KBSentral. A total of 16 prizes were given away yesterday. The event commenced with a welcoming speech by the Marketing & Events Manager, Ahmad Anwar Rosly, who proceeded to draw the first 6 winners. It was then preceded by Studio Programming RTB KB Supervisor Dayang Naemah Awang, to draw another 5 winners. Mr Chang then proceeded to draw the other 5 top lucky winners. In between the draws, quiz questions were asked to the audience and the prizes to these quizzes were Cash Vouchers from various outlets under KBSentral.

The first prize winner was won by Pg Jamilah Pg Hassan winning a LG Brand 43 Inch LED TV.

The other top three winners won themselves prizes which includes Philip Brand electrical appliances such as Blender, Coffee Maker, Rice Cooker, Toaster and a Yappe printer.

Lucky Draw coupon holders were reminded to be present at the Grand Lucky Draw presentation, along with their Identity Cards (IC) as proof of identity and their Lucky Draw coupons. Representatives were allowed, but they must bring along their own ICs, as well as the photocopy IC of the winner along with the original coupon. Sentral Grand Lucky Draw the third series will be on 8th January 2017 and the final series on 9th July 2017.

Do follow them on Facebook KB Sentral Shopping Centre and Instagram @kbsentral for all the latest updates on our upcoming event activities!

Md Al-Azim Md Ariwan winning the second prize, a night stay at Garden Sentral Hotel

Marketing & Events Manager, Ahmad Anwar Rosly handed out a consolation prize to Alya Adriana who won a 4 movie ticket at KB Times Cineplex

The November birthday celebrants during the intervals of the lucky draw. A nice gimmick from the Sentral Shopping Centre management

The Top 15 winners for the month of November

This became a popular spot after the lucky draw event. Everyone wants to be a winner 😀

More events coming this week

Something to look forward to in December 😀

Jati Transport Appreciation Day is an event specially organised to thank all Mercedes-Benz Brunei customers for placing their trust in our products and services over the past years.

At the event, our guests were treated to a widespread of international cuisine and their children enjoying an afternoon full of fun activities such as face painting, hand henna, photo booth, etc.

A special demonstration on Mercedes-Benz Intelligent Drive were also demonstrated at the event with the new S-Class. Our sales executives demonstrated the driver assistance system which helps the driver to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle ahead and to remain in the centre of the lane. DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and Stop&Go Pilot relieves the strain on the driver, especially on long journeys and in tailbacks.

A Mercedes-Benz powerbank were also given away to those who take part in the Park Pilot challenge and successfully perform the autonomous parking. The Park Pilot system can pilot the vehicle into parking spaces automatically by means of braking and steering intervention. If an automatic transmission is fitted, the speed is controlled automatically and gear changes are automatic also.

Our guests were given the opportunity to test drive a full range of Mercedes-Benz models. Images courtesy of Jati Transport and Aziz Idris of Borneo Bulletin.