Baiduri Prestige and Smart Executive members being toured by representatives from Sejalin Enterprise

Baiduri Bank, in collaboration with Sejalin Enterprise, organised an exclusive preview of Bang & Olufsen’s design-centric electronic sound systems at the Bang & Olufsen showroom in Kiarong last week for their Prestige and Smart Executive members.

During the cocktail style event, a representative from Sejalin Enterprise gave a briefing on Bang & Olufsen products.

According to Hjh Maripaz Abdullah, Head of Business Development and Special Programmes in Baiduri Bank, “We understand our members’ refined tastes and affinity for luxury, and Bang & Olufsen is a brand which not only caters to that but also embodies sophistication as well as quality.”

Baiduri Prestige and Smart Executive members present during the night were also treated to discounted prices on Bang & Olufsen product bundles. Bundle 1, consisting of the Beoplay A2 Bluetooth Speaker with the Beoplay H3 Earphones, was available at discounted price of BND776 (usual price is BND876). Bundle 2, which consists of the Beolit 15 Bluetooth Speaker and Beoplay H6 Headphones, was available for only BND1,296 (usual price BND1,396). Finally, guests can also purchase any Duba Height Adjustable Table and SBS Ergonomic Chair combination, with BND100 off.

On top of this, the first 20 Prestige or Smart Executive members to purchase these exclusive bundles were treated to another BND100 cash rebate when they purchase using their Prestige or Smart Executive cards.

Present at the event were Ms Dorothy Newn, Head of Group Communications Department, Ms Ng Yick Wei, Head of Group Marketing Department, as well as staff of Baiduri Bank.

 

The KB Sentral building located before entering Kuala Belait area

It was Batman and Superman fever last week

The Brunei District YoYo Contest 2016

Only officially opened last November, KB Sentral Shopping Centre (@kbsentral) has been picking its pace for the past month or so with many activities line up for the benefit of the public. It’s more like a one stop shopping place for the residents of Kuala Belait, Seria and also our neighbouring state of Miri. Just look as it as the KB version of Times Square Shopping Centre in Berakas. It may take time to get more traffic but it has been gradually on the rise after many awarenesses of newspapers and social media.

Below are some of the events that have been ongoing for the month alone in March 2016. Good job on the management on creating activities at KB Sentral as it certainly helps a lot of publicity around the area. Surprisingly not many people know of its existence, thinking perhaps it’s just a place for accommodation.

Anyway, I will be running some competition on IG so do stay tune. Below are some of the pictures taken from KB Sentral Facebook Page. Keep it up, guys!!

It was good to see the Anti-Drug roadshow organised by the Narcotics Control Bureau (@nodrugsatall) earlier this week

The youth enjoying the card games as part of the Vanguard Tournament

Ah, something for the public to be aware. You can win a bungalow or a car as part of the KB Sentral’s promotion.

There’s also a monthly draw for shoppers at KB Sentral

Photo competition and you can win awesome Canon cameras from Interhouse Company

Deadpool at KB Sentral Cube Enterprise which was officially launched last weekend

One of the Ultraman visiting KB Sentral for the residents of KB

The strongest kid, Aiman Mujibur, pulling two stationery cars

 

Late post: A special dinner was held at Parkview Hotel’s Al-Barakah Ballroom on last Wednesday, featuring an appearance by none other than the heroes from the ‘Ultraman Live in Brunei’ show.

The guests for the dinner consisted of in-house guests and ticket holders of the show, who had the opportunity to dine and meet four of the Japanese pop icons.

Ultraman Zero, Ultraman Ginga, Ultraman Tiga and Ultraman Mebius shook hands and took photos with the diners.

Executive Director of Parkview Hotel Hambali Pehin Orang Kaya Shahbandar Dato Seri Paduka Hj Mohd Salleh said they were lucky to be able to house team Ultraman, who came all the way from Japan.

Marketing Manager Dk Sabrina Pg Hj Abdullah also expressed she was delighted with how they were able to etch smiles across their guests, be it adults or children.
The Ultraman Live in Brunei 2016 has been an instant hit among Bruneians and it was such a timely manner that it was held during the school holidays.

The final show of the Ultraman show ended on Monday, 28th March. I myself was impressed with the show and I do hope to see more of this kind of entertainment in Brunei. Oh yea, this probably was an improvement from last year’s entertainment (for kids) by a different organiser who showcased some dinosaurs.

 

Download SnapFeed app on your smartphones and check out the latest deals in Brunei and also get rewarded from respective merchants such as BurgerKing, KFC and Sushi Tei to name a few and also check out the new movie listings as well.

 

The local media posing with the Ultraman characters during the sneak preview last Wednesday. Thank you to the organisers for the opportunity.

One of the fight sequence

Ultramar in the house… Ooohh yeaaa… I’m not a huge fan of Ultraman during my childhood days. I was more into He-Man, M•A•S•K, Gobots, Thundercats and even My Little Pony *lol* But who doesn’t know Ultraman? It’s one of the iconic Japanese sci-fi hero and to my prior knowledge, I thought there was only one Ultraman. Apparently there are 8 of them – Ultraman, Ultraseven, Ultraman Taro, Ultraman Tiga, Ultraman Cosmos, Ultraman Mebius, Ultraman Zero, and Ultraman Ginga. All of them are in Brunei Darussalam for a special feat to perform for the public as they overcoming their villains every day until the 28th of March 2016. If you want to witness a great show (which I truly enjoyed), you can get your tickets at Times Square outlets from 11am to 9pm.

The show is billed Ultraman Live in Brunei 2016 and I’m pretty sure the information has gone viral. What can you expect from the show? One thing that I’m impressed is the choreography by the performers (Ultramans and their villains) and to give more realism, the producers from Japan included some nice special effects which reminds me of my experience in a 4D cinema. Expect some pyro and laser beams shooting left and right on the projector screen. There’s even a chance for some of the kids to mingle with the popular sci-fi characters. On top of that, they have a localised storyline to make it relevant to the audience. I salute the producers and engineers for such effort.

Just a perfect time that it’s happening during the school holidays so why don’t give yourself a shot and check out Ultraman Live in Brunei 2016. The event is taking place at Jerudong Park Amphitheater. I highly recommend parents to bring their kids to such a show. I myself enjoyed my time a few days ago during the sneak preview screening. You can check out more on their info at their Facebook Page or follow them on instagram @ultramanliveinbrunei2016

Sometimes I wonder how they look in real life

This baddie is so cool. Ultraman Belial.

You might be the lucky ones to be on stage and get up close and personal with the characters

Raise your hands to give some power

Parents and their children having a blast during the show

There are other cute characters to look at

One of the villains squaring off against Ultraman

I didn’t realise there were so many Ultraman characters

Some balloon action halfway through the show

Let’s dance the night away

@calistaleahliew the host of the Ultraman Live in Brunei 2016

 

A new travel agent in town

 

Ultramar brings cheers at Children’s Ward at RIPAS

Happening this Friday and Saturday

Synopsis of Jong Sarat: Each struggles between duty and desire: pragmatic Razak, who wants to support his family; dreamy Nur, who is torn between her father’s wishes and her own yearnings; frustrated Asmali, who always feels like second best; and loyal Salmah, who wants only to nurture the friendships around her as carefully as she nurtures her parents’ Jong Sarat business.

One more until their second original production ‘Jong Sarat’! Get your tickets *TODAY* for either of these production nights:

Friday, 22nd January 2016, 7pm
Saturday, 23rd January 2016, 7pm

Tickets are available at SM Yayasan SHHB Primary School Hall this week from 4pm – 9.30pm. You’ll also be able to grab them at The Library Cafe @thelibrarycafebwn and Caffé Verve @ Alliance Francaise de Brunei @vervespresso. You can view more on their info at their website

Check the map for our venue and ticket collection point! Kindly contact for more information (via message only).

Telegram:telegram.me/seedsjongsarat
Whatsapp: +6738678673 for tickets updates.

Some of the cast of Jong Sarat. Image by Ikhwan Salleh of The Brunei Times.

One of the many characters in Jong Sarat, the second original production by Seeds Brunei, during a rehearsal held recently. Image by Ikhwan Salleh of The Brunei Times.

 

Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Haji Abdul Rahman bin Haji Ibrahim highlighted and acknowledged that the country needs to stimulate economic growth through SMEs as the current oil prices have impacted the Brunei revenue stream during the launch of the Enterprise Open Day for Small and Medium Enterprises at Design and Technology Building located in the Anggerek Desa Technology Park

The Energy and Industry Department at the Prime Minister’s Office (“EIDPMO”) organised an Enterprise Open Day for Small and Medium Enterprises (“SMEs”). Today (Thursday) will be the final day for the event.

The Enterprise Open Day event is aimed at increasing awareness of the various enterprise support services available as well as identifying issues faced by existing and upcoming by entrepreneurs in Brunei Darussalam.

 Held at the Design and Technology Building located in the Anggerek Desa Technology Park, the event opened on Tuesday, 19 January 2015 and will continue on Wednesday and Thursday from 8am to 5pm. The Enterprise Open Day is based around the theme, “Leading Economic Growth and Contributing to GDP for Brunei Darussalam” and was officiated by the Guest of Honour, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister of Finance at the Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Haji Abdul Rahman bin Haji Ibrahim.

Also in attendance were Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Singamanteri Kolonel (B) Dato Seri Setia (Dr.) Awang Haji Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar, Minister of Energy and Industry at the Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Awang Haji Hamdan bin Haji Abu Bakar, Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mohd Roselan bin Haji Mohd Daud, Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Awang Haji Hisham bin Haji Mohd Hanifah, Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Finance, Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Dr. Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Finance, Permanent Secretaries, Deputy Permanent Secretaries from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, as well as directors of all the participating agencies.

After a brief opening ceremony, Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Haji Abdul Rahman took a tour of the booths set up by both government agencies and financial institutions as well as the ‘Enterprise Issues’ log in desk and Business Advisory Clinics.

Businesses planning to utilise any of these services, should bring their form 16 and 17 and company chop.

Also in conjunction with The Enterprise Open Day, is the launch of the business.gov.bn website and the Central Payment System (“CPS”). The business.gov.bn is a portal providing a single source of information of business-related government services across various Ministries and agencies. The CPS is a payment module under the E-Government Platform enabling customers to pay via online for Government e-services.

One biz will be the first e-service to use CPS with the long term goal of expanding this payment service to other Government e-services. The ‘Enterprise Issues’ log in desk is made available to collect information on any issues or challenges met by local SMEs in Brunei Darussalam.

There will also be presentations by Wawasan Secretariat, Monetary Authority of Brunei Darussalam (“AMBD”) and Brunei Intellectual Property (“BruIPO”) conducted on Wednesday and Thursday to provide insights and information for those attending Enterprise Open Day. Business advisory clinics will also be made available by various agencies including EIDPMO, various banks, BruIPO and LiveWire. Enterprise Open Day saw the participation of agencies both from government and financial institutions setting up support service and information counters to assist enterprises to better understand the assistance provided by the sultanate.

These include Wawasan 2035 Secretariat, Ease of Doing Business, FDI Centre, Registry of Companies and Business Names from Ministry of Finance, Revenue Division from Ministry of Finance, BruIPO, E-Government National Centre (“EGNC”), Labour Department, Royal Customs and Excise Department, Tabung Amanah Pekerja (“TAP”), AMBD, BAG Networks Sdn Bhd, Authority for Building Control & Construction Industry (“ABCi”) and banks.

 

Borneo Insider’s Guide (BiG) is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year with The BiG 10th Anniversary Picnic Festival at the Jerudong Park Colonnade this Sunday, 24th January 2016, from 2pm – 10pm. There will be open-air picnic spots; 8 live music performances by Maria ‘Eia’ Grace Koh, Kala K, with support from DIG Records Preservation Blues Jazz Hall Band and friends; lucky draws, an adult colouring competition and a photo competition with prizes to be won, great food and creative crafts on sale by 50 local and regional vendors. The BiG anniversary event is not just a celebration of BiG magazine’s 10th year in print, but it is also to raise money for two local charities: Majlis Kesejahteraan Masyarakat (MKM) and Care and Actions for Strays (CAS).

 

It’s always fun traveling in groups because it gives a different sense of fun and bonding. This time, 20 from Brunei Toastmasters (BSC, UBD, BASC and Otters) traveled to Kota Kinabalu for a joint meeting with KK toastmasters, its first ever to be conducted. The toastmasters meeting followed the Brunei agenda and format to share experience with the KK toastmasters on how it is being conducted in Brunei.

I noticed some differences from Brunei and KK in terms of the agenda. Firstly, the table topic speeches take place in the first half of the meeting. Brunei toastmasters had this practice for many years until they change the format a few years ago and it has been very effective for speech evaluators and time management.

Secondly, the KK toastmasters have an invocator to kick off the meeting, toasting to Yang Di Pertain Agong and Yang Di Pertua Negeri Sabah and lastly to Toastmasters International. Interesting. We don’t practice that in Brunei.

Lastly, just a few things such as a Humour Master for KK side for a max of 5 minutes to entertain the audience and the different role of the Table Topics Evaluator where he or she focuses more on the Table Topics Master then briefly on the Table Topics speakers.

On Sunday, we had a leadership training on how to improve the clubs and also to retrain the executive committees (Exco) of the various toastmasters club from KK and Brunei. This training is normally carried out at least twice a year in hoping the Excos that attended can share their knowledge to their respective clubs.

Overall, a fruitful weekend I had and a big thank you to my KK friends, Phylicia, Laurence and Jerry, for bring me around last weekend. I’m also glad that Brunei Speakers’ Club has two new members now – Satra and Alfa. Our club is definitely growing but let’s not forget the older members who have played an important role in sustaining the club.

 

Netcom associates with a Hua Ho staff (in red) at the new Netcom IT department located at Hua Ho Manggis

Razer products at discounted price until 8th February

In a partnership to better serve their customers, Netcom have opened their 2nd IT Department collaboration with Hua Ho Department Store. Situated at Hua Ho Manggis, the new IT Department is a strategic location to serve the residents of Jalan Muara.

This collaboration is an extension of the business partnership between Hua Ho and Netcom, with the success of the IT Department in the Hua Ho Yayasan Branch.

The Hua Ho Manggis IT Department is open daily from 10am – 10pm and is located on the 2nd Floor. It features a full range of Razer and Dell products, as well as gaming gear such as Kingston, HyperX, Logitech and Prolink. Other available products include networking solutions, pen drives, cartridges and also a full range of consumer printers from Canon.

Mr. Vincent Goh, Managing Director of Netcom, said ” We deeply appreciate the trust and the strong support from our business partner, Hua Ho. We are thankful to Netcom customers for supporting us all these years, and we are committed to providing excellent services, quality products and competitive prices to the public.”

To celebrate the opening, Netcom is offering slashed prices for Razer and other selected products until February 8th. For every purchase of $100 and over in a single receipt, customers will receive an exclusive Dell umbrella.

 

One of the Ultraman walking with the students at St. George’s School. Image taken from St. George’s School Facebook Page.

Students were excited by their presence at school. Image taken from St. George’s School Facebook Page.

It was a day to remember for the students of two schools in the capital as they played host to the intergalactic heroes Ultraman Zero, Ultraman Ginga and Ultraman Tiga.

The multipurpose hall of St George’s School erupted with cheers and screams of close to 300 students as the Japanese heroes greeted them and showed off their signature moves much to the delight of their young fans.

“I’ve known about Ultraman since I was a kid – I used to watch him while I was growing up. Today is really awesome, I still can’t believe Ultraman is here at our school!” exclaimed Year 10 student Cj Ashley Albano.

A spokeperson for Ultraman Live Brunei shared that the visit is part of its ongoing roadshow to give a chance for fans, both old and new, to get a glimpse of Ultraman and what to expect during the upcoming show in March.

“With a history expanding over 50 years, we want our fans to see and learn more about all the history of the intergalactic hero,” added the spokesperson.

The day also saw two lucky students winning themselves free Ultraman Live tickets thanks to their knowledge of Ultraman.

The three heroes also paid a visit to Chung Hwa Middle School (CHMS).

Tickets were also given to the respective teachers of the school to be distributed to some of their best students.

The roadshow will continue today with a visit to Pusat Ehsan and KACA.

Ultraman Live Brunei will take place during the first-term school holiday from March 18 to 28 at Jerudong Park Amphitheatre.

Tickets are available at Mach Telecommunications, Times Square; Freshco Batu Bersurat; Sentral Shopping Centre in Kuala Belait; Cheezbox; all outlets of Gong Cha; EGM branches in Serusop, The Mall and Bunut; and the Jerudong Park Ticketing Counter.

The public can also contact the hotline of Ultraman Live in Brunei at 723-7477 and 829-7890, or follow updates on Facebook at ‘Ultraman Live in Brunei 2016’ and Instagram at ‘@UltramanLiveinBrunei2016’. Text courtesy of Adib Noor of The Brunei Times.

Students in ecstatic mood yesterday. Image taken from St. George’s School Facebook Page.

Ultraman’s appearance at the school hall. Image taken from St. George’s School Facebook Page.

Get your tickets now

Yes, Maria Sharapova makes it to the 3rd round. Image from Ausopen.com

Lleyton Hewitt playing his final Aussie Open and made it through to the 2nd round. Image from News Corp Australia.

The Australian Open. Oi, Oi, Oi.. That’s how they chant the Aussie way. The next two weeks, I will be heavily be attentive to the first Grand Slam of the year – The Australian Open. My favourite is, of course, Roger Ferderer, and he is still looking sharp at the age of 34. Not bad at all.

The biggest upset so far is Rafael Nadal who lost in a 5-setter to Verdasco in the first round. Has Nadal got what is left of him? According to the press, he has still have much to offer on the court. Rafael is also the ambassador for Kia as he unveiled the latest Kia X-Car at the Australian Open 2016 last week.

My other favourite player is Maria Sharapova who breezed past the second round with ease. One player that I am also eyeing is Lleyton Hewitt, playing his last Australia Open and also he is in his final professional tennis career. Let’s see how far the Australian can go on his home turf.

Tennis superstar and Kia global brand ambassador Rafael Nadal lifted the cover off of Kia’s latest ‘X-Car’ today in Melbourne, Australia during the official VIK handover ceremony for the Australian Open 2016. The one-of-a-kind Sportage CUV was created in collaboration with Twentieth Century Fox and modelled after the popular X-Men character Mystique

The winners of the “Drive Your Way to the 2016 Australian Open” feted last December 2015. Enjoy the tennis 😀

In keeping customers well informed on the latest trends in financial markets, Baiduri Bank, in collaboration with their long standing strategic partner, DBS Bank Singapore, organized an investment seminar linked to currency strategies titled, “Managing FX Volatility from a Weaker Chinese Yuan and Higher US Interest Rates”. The event was held at the Mutiara Ballroom, Radisson Hotel on 15 January 2015.

Pg Azaleen Pg Dato Hj Mustapha, Head of Retail Banking and Branch Network at Baiduri Bank gave the welcoming remarks. In his speech, he highlighted that after seven years since the global crisis of 2008, global markets were off to a bad start for 2016. The question is where are the opportunities?

The seminar was presented by Mr Philip Wee Sung Seng, Senior Currency Economist of DBS Bank, Singapore, who oversees currency research and co-manages macroeconomic research at DBS. He discussed the falling oil prices, depreciating currencies and China’s transition towards a slower “new normal” economy. In his presentation he also discussed how the global economy and financial markets evolved seven years after the global financial crisis.
Also present at the event were management and staff of Baiduri Bank including Andrew Young, Deputy General Manager, Operations Management Division and Diversification & Strategic Development of Baiduri Bank, and Peng Eng Soon, Head of Wealth Management, Baiduri Bank.

Pg Azaleen Pg Dato Hj Mustapha, Head of Retail Banking and Branch Network, Baiduri Bank

Mr Philip Wee Sung Seng, Senior Currency Economist of DBS Bank, Singapore

Baiduri Bank has a range of investment products and services to offer and is currently hosting a special promotion where with sign up of selected savings and protection plans with an annual premium of BND 2,000, customers will receive a Samsung Galaxy Tab. Furthermore, those who sign up for a monthly plan with premium of BND100 will receive a Hydroflask.

Customers who wish to invest in unit trusts are also treated to a 25% off total sales charge when they subscribe to a unit trust distributed by Baiduri Bank.

As an incentive, customers who consult with the Associate Financial Planners at Wealth Management Centre will receive movie tickets upon completion of an insurance planning exercise. Baiduri’s Wealth Management Centre is at 2nd Floor Baiduri Bank Kiulap Branch. To secure an appointment, or for more information, customers can call 2232457 during banking hours.

Gracing the New Year and upcoming Chinese New Year, KFC Brunei is delighting its fans by bringing back the sensational Ayam Kicap Meletup for customers to enjoy!

KFC Ayam Kicap Meletup features KFC’s signature chicken fried to perfection, together with the flavours of imported unique Shoyu soy sauce, seaweed, chili flakes, sesame seeds and delectable spices. The outcome is a deliciously aromatic fusion of sweet, savoury and spicy flavours in every bite.

“Ayam Kicap Meletup was launched last year in June and due to its amazing response, we are bringing it back by popular demand. The unique yet familiar taste with a local twist – kicap and chili is what makes this product such a big hit with our fellow Bruneians”, said Del goh, Vice President, KFC Brunei.

“We are confident that our customers will be delighted at the chance to taste the Ayam Kicap Meletup again, and share the extraordinary taste with family and friends this coming festive season!” he added.
With the tagline “Chinese New Year is more “meletup” when we celebrate together”, the comeback of this delicious product symbolizes the bringing together of all friends and family to share the celebration as well as the unique flavour of the Ayam Kicap Meletup.

Ayam Kicap Meletup

In line with the Chinese New Year festivities, KFC also created a special side dish, a fragrant Seaweed Rice to complement the Ayam Kicap Meletup. At only $6.60 customers can enjoy a good value combo meal consisting of two pieces of Ayam Kicap Meletup fried chicken, seaweed rice OR crispier fries, coleslaw, as well as a cup of soft drink.

KFC is also offering the Ayam Kicap Meletup big value buckets for families and groups at affordable prices. Great for sharing during the festivities, the KFC Ayam Kicap Meletup comes in a 9-piece Bucket consisting of nine pieces of chicken, a large whipped potato, one large crispier fries along with a 1.5 litre Pepsi, all for only $26.90! There is also a 5-piece Bucket option at $15.80. Make your visit to the nearest KFC this auspicious season and enjoy the Ayam Kicap Meletup while stocks last.

I’m glad someone wrote this piece to the Editor (The Brunei Times)

Movies ain’t for babies. I have highlighted this long time ago on my social media last year. It boggles me why parents would bring toddlers or babies or even small kids to movies that are inappropriate. This is pretty common in Brunei because the rules and regulations are not as strict. It’s only relying on “common sense” for parents or guardians to take that huge responsibility.

It’s not worth it to disrupt the harmony of movie goers who paid their dues for a movie experience. For one thing, babies won’t be able to understand the context of the movie though there might be an element of influence such as violence (which is a definite no-no). The most annoying part would be the the cry (or the screaming) babies. This has happened occasionally and it was relieved when mothers carrying their babies would politely exit the cinema to lessen the disruption.

Just a point for parents: Do be considerate to other movie goers and also for the sake of your kids.