Borneo Bulletin Opinion
| Change taxi fare
chart at airport to help visitors A few days ago, while I was standing near the board that displays taxi rates at the arrival hall of the Brunei International Airport, at least three groups of tourists were asking taxi drivers about the fare from the airport to Empire Hotel. The taxi drivers told them the fare to Empire Hotel was $35. The tourists then questioned the taxi drivers why they were charging $35 when the taxi fare chart stated clearly $25. The taxi drivers, who were not fluent in English, tried to explain that they don't follow the board as the taxi rates have been revised. Both sides argued for a while before the tourists boarded the taxies unhappily. Will the airport/taxi/tourism authority please look into this issue? If the taxi fares have been changed, then change the rates on the board to stop tourists from feeling that they are being cheated by Brunei taxi drivers. It also brings a bad reputation to Brunei. Don't they say the first impression is the most lasting impression? To avoid future confrontations or unnecessary arguments between taxi drivers and tourists, the concerned authority should change the chart at the airport immediately. Officials have to act fast if we want to create a good impression of Brunei to foreigners. No tourist likes to set foot on foreign soil and haggle with taxi drivers over fares to take him/her to a hotel. - Get It Right |
| Grass cutting:
danger of projectiles Recently, when I was going to pick up my son from school in Jln Muara, I saw a group of grass cutters busy at work by the roadside. This was not the first time I have seen grass cutters at work but every time I saw a group I used to wonder why they can't have a shield to stop debris, like small stones, flying off the fast rotating blades as they cut the grass. Mind you, stones or such similar objects coming into contact with the blades are hurtled at blinding speeds. If the projectiles hit a pedestrian or any fast moving vehicle it could lead to fatalities. My thoughts came true and my car became the victim of one such projectile that came off a blade of one of the machines. I heard a crackling noise and the next moment I realised a crack on the windscreen. I cursed my luck while driving towards my son's school. It's high time the relevant authority looked into the equipment handled by grass cutters. Someone has to find a way to shield such small objects being hurtled as they cut the grass. This has to be dealt with urgently as most of the grass cutters are found working by the side of busy roads. Imagine if a heavier stone hits the windscreen of a car the driver will be so startled he will lose control of the vehicle leading to an accident that may see lives being lost. It's up to the concerned authority to devise a mechanism in order to ensure the safety of pedestrians and vehicles. - Annoyed motorist |
| Let us build our
houses My relatives and I have been waiting so long to build our houses at Kg Rimba. Since we have been called up last year, briefed and drawn for the allocation of our long-awaited land, the relevant authority has till now not lived up to its promises of letting us build our houses. The entitled holders were told that once we started paying our land deposits either in full or through monthly installments within three years, we will be allowed to plan and build our houses right away but with a slight delay of two months due to incomplete infrastructure. Almost a year has passed now and we have still not received any formal response to start building our houses. The contractors too have given the same reason that the infrastructure is not complete yet. Allocating land to entitled holders without complete infrastructure is not an efficient way of delivering services. If something does not go right according to plans, then the authority should inform entitled holders formally about any delays that they have encountered. Because, for us entitled holders, every delay proves costly as we will have to make higher loan repayments as our years in service come down. We urge the ministry to look into this matter urgently and help us build our houses. - Entitled Holder, BSB |
| Trying to know more
about traffic rules I have just started working in Brunei and being in the sales force, part of my job is to drive around. Although I hold an international driving licence, which has been converted to Brunei driving licence, there are a few traffic rules that I need to confirm. I was not able to get such information on Brunei Government or land authorities web sites so I hope someone could provide me with information on this which will be very helpful not only to me but others like me. a) Can we use hand phones while we are driving? b) Can we smoke while driving with one hand on the steering wheel and another holding a cigarette? c) Can we cut into continuous white line like the one on the big roundabout? d) Is it compulsory for drivers to wear seat belts while driving? e) Can we stop and double park cars at school area and block other road users? f) Can we rush over traffic lights a few seconds after they turn red? In the country that I come from, the above rules are strictly implemented and doing any of the above would mean trouble. But it has helped save a lot of lives over the years and I believe a well developed country like Brunei should have stringent rules to protect road users. - New Driver |
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Simple message to morning traffic
racers |
| Ease rules on Easi
to Prima transition I would like to first applaud DST on its new tariffs. However, a problem is being faced by Easi card users who wish to make the transition from Easi to Prima. Client-based businessmen/women are unable to maintain their existing numbers if they want to switch from an Easi line to Prima. This in effect discourages Easi customers to make the transition. It is therefore the responsibility of DST as the service provider to overcome this problem and provide customers with the option of maintaining their existing Easi number even as they move to Prima. - Easi user |
| Why can't RBA
recruit female cadet pilots? I remember a few years ago RBA was trying to recruit a female cadet pilot and I believe a cadet was also chosen. I am curious why RBA doesn't make it (recruitment) an annual event? I was very surprised to read in the Borneo Bulletin recently that there are no female cadet pilots in RBA and all are male. RBA should continue to recruit female cadet pilots every year. - Orange Juice |
| Car & boat trailers
need to be regulated The use of car and boat trailers need to be regulated in Brunei. As we have seen in the United Kingdom and other countries, all trailers need to have rear lights complete with brake and indicator lights as well as the vehicle's registration plates attached to the rear side of the trailer. This is to provide the necessary indication if the vehicle is stopping or turning left or right. It also helps the police see the number plates of the vehicles if they happen to violate the rules. In Brunei, we see them only being standard in military trailers. They are also being enforced in all the oil tanker trailers and container trailers, which I believe are necessary, and they have to be inspected or registered every six months. I hope our Department of Land Transport will take necessary action and enforce the law that all trailers need to have the necessary indicator lights and licence plates fitted at the back of the trailer. Currently, they only use hazard lights, which sometimes are very confusing to other road users as they don't know if a trailer is turning left or right. - Confused |
| Slow payments
frustrate food suppliers Suppliers for schools and colleges' feeding scheme under the Ministry of Education are having difficulties because of slow payments due to the newly introduced Tahfis system. Previously, the Feeding Scheme Office was making slow payments but that has already been rectified. Now since the introduction of the Tahfis system, the problem seems to have returned. The concerned authority has to find out whether the Tahfis system is suitable to be used or if the staff is properly trained to handle the new system. Perhaps, there could be shortage of hands to handle the payment process. We, as suppliers, really hope that this problem can be solved as soon as possible so that our businesses can run smoothly to ensure the best quality of food is supplied to all the students. - Disappointed supplier |
| Where have all the
Net cards gone?
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| Brunei's beautiful
beaches becoming dumping grounds As a frequent visitor to beaches, I am saddened to see some of our beautiful beaches, particularly the one along Jalan Maulana area, have become dumping grounds for rubbish. It is not just the household waste but also construction waste that is being indiscriminately dumped there by irresponsible people. Piles of rubbish contain materials that attract flies and vermin. The hazardous substances also cause an obnoxious smell. Meanwhile piles of construction waste contain undesirable substances that can be harmful to our environment and the health of the beach-goers. The authorities concerned should take firm action and book those who dump waste. We don't need to wait for our beloved Sultan to pay another visit, do we? - Beach-goer |
| Typing class info
Referring to the letter by "Desperate to find" dated September 17, 2005 in the Opinion column "Looking for typing and shorthand classes," this is to inform him/her of our centre in Lumut, KB where we have training facilities for typing. Our centre is also an authorised testing centre for International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL). - Nisa - NCI Development and Training Services - Tel No. 3240519/8620584 |
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