Hours Extended Not Reduced
By Ben Ng

Bandar Seri Begawan - Business owners may apply for special licenses if they intend on operating past midnight, but they must have a good reason to do so.

Speaking to members of the media at a press conference yesterday, senior officials from the Municipal Department along with District Officers, clarified issues related to the changes in business operating hours.

Brunei Darussalam's business community along with members of the general public have expressed great concern over the recent changes in operating hours, claiming that it will affect their business negatively, as well as having the potential to drive away foreign investment.

According to the Municipal Department, however, business operating hours were actually extended, and not cut short as most have come to believe.

Few people are aware that shops, cafes, restaurants, convenience stores and so on, are actually supposed to close a lot earlier than they currently do — the result of little enforcement and ample flexibility being given to them.

The Municipal Department yesterday revealed that supermarkets were supposed to be closed by 9.30pm, restaurants/cafes by 11 pm, and all convenience stores by 9.30pm. However, this has gone by almost unnoticed by the public as most shops operate past their time frame — something the public has gotten used to.

The latest changes in operating hours have added a full extra hour to some businesses, with supermarkets being allowed to open an extra one and a half hours, cafés/restaurants being given an extra hour, and convenience stores being given an extra one and a half hours.

"We are actually extending the operating hours, not cutting it short," said Dato Paduka Hj Yusop Bakar, the Brunei-Muara District Officer, speaking alongside members of the Municipal Department.

"The new operating hours aren't meant to harm businesses around Brunei, but to help them by giving them more 'suitable' operating hours," said an official from the Department.

"We came to the decision based on what we have observed. Some restaurants and cafe's are totally empty by midnight, so we take things like that into consideration," he added.

"We aren't only looking at it from a business perspective," he said, "we also look at other aspects such as public safety, the noise levels generated by restaurants around kampungs for example, and of course, the overall harmony of the nation."

As for businesses that plan on catering past midnight, they will have to apply for a special licence from the Licencing Board, and will only be granted a licence to operate if they provide suitable reasons, he said.

"We will examine applicants on a 'case-by-case' basis and we will decide whether they can operate or not," he added.  -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

Related News: Business Hours 'Extended, Not Shortened' | New Business Hours Evoke Mixed Response

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