Borneo Bulletin Opinion
| 6
months jail, $1,000 fine for possessing protected species This is in response to the letter written by "Environmental watchdog" entitled "Regular Checks Needed to Curb Trading of Endangered Species" in the Opinion page dated June 18, Saturday. Anyone in possession of the trophy or flesh of any mammal, bird, fish or reptile protected by the Wild Life Protection Act 1978 (amended in 1984) of Brunei Darussalam could lead to six months' imprisonment and $1,000 fine. The Brunei Museums Department has been receiving many protected species from the public and has reintroduced them again into the wilderness. This is very important because of their threatened population in the wild. The Museums Department also thank "Environmental watchdog" for such associated and most appreciated action. In seeking full support from the public to eradicate this threatening wildlife trade nationally and regionally, the Museums Department is expecting more protected species to be handed over by members of the public who are not aware of their status. The department urges those in possession of protected species not to release them immediately into the forest without the consent of the department because it might end up in the wrong habitat and may not survive or get trapped again by irresponsible homosapiens. They should consult the Natural History Section of the department in person first for further assessment, identification, investigation and safe release. - Museums Department |
| Bring
back ‘Growing Up Gotti' TV show I and my fellow colleagues are tired of the complaints that have been lodged against the TV show "Growing Up Gotti" by mothers, especially in Brunei. This has resulted in the show being censored and taken over by another TV show, "Small Wonders", which by the way is the same episode repeated every week. "Growing Up Gotti" is a joy to watch and I am not the only one who feels that way. If other shows such as "Miss Match" or "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" can be shown, then "Growing Up Gotti" should be allowed as well. I understand a mother's concern for herself and her children but if they do not appreciate the programme then they should simply change the channel or turn off the TV and tell their children to do so too. "Growing Up Gotti" should be brought back to Kristal, as it is not right to 'punish' some viewers just because a small section of other viewers do not like the programme. Kristal viewers are all paying the same subscription fee and all of them deserve to watch what has been promised to them. The show must be returned and please allow it to return quickly. - An Annoyed GUG Fan |
| Unfair
refereeing in national basketball games On June 5, I went to see a basketball competition (Temburong vs Kuala Belait and Brunei Muara vs Tutong) of the Pesta Sukan Kebangsaan. I'm a basketball lover and after watching the match I was so angry. The referee was on the Brunei-Muara side. That was not fair. Tutong team should have won the game. The referee had been helping Brunei-Muara team since the match started. In the fourth quarter, Tutong team was leading by two points in the last minute. However, after an equaliser from Brunei-Muara team, the referee gave an offensive foul to Tutong team while they made their last attack. That was ridiculous! Muara team got two free throws and won the game. The first game involving Temburong and Kuala Belait was no better. I was wondering why the referee made such mistakes. A referee shouldn't be unfair. In the match between Kuala Belait and Temburong, one of the Temburong players punched a Kuala Belait player. Both referees saw the incident and they should have awarded a technical foul to the player but they didn't. Not even a foul was called!! Is this what we call basketball? This might be one of the major reasons why the standard of basketball in Brunei Darussalam is not as good as in other countries. I feel so sad about it as a basketball lover. I'm wondering since the Basketball Association of Brunei Darussalam wanted to hold the competition, why couldn't they ensure the game was fair. It was a national game and still such unfair decisions were made. If the Association is not able to handle the game then give it to someone else who has the ability. All the fans shouted that the referee was not fair. It was a shame! Many thought that the game was held to ensure Bandar teams took the honours. If so, why don't the Basketball Association allow only Bandar Seri Begawan players to take part. As a basketball lover, I just hope that the Basketball Association will do something about it. - Angry fan |
| Why
can't PR sponsor ‘foreigner' husband? There are a few issues that I would like to raise. The first one is that of a wife who is a permanent resident of Brunei while her husband is a foreigner. Why is the wife unable to sponsor her husband to work in Brunei when the opposite (husband is a permanent resident and his wife a foreigner) can be quite easily done? I am sure that it's nobody's wish to see the couple break up, as the wife continues to work in Brunei and her husband has to search elsewhere for job opportunities. This would then lead to the second issue - the 14 job categories that have been reserved for locals. Many would understand the reason behind such preventive measures. But are there sufficient locals to fill in those posts? Some locals seem to be buying time while waiting for positions in the government sector. This has become increasingly annoying as they will only work for a short period of time and leave the company when they have only begun to understand what their work responsibilities are. The whole cycle starts again, where the company has to interview candidates and train them only to see more employees leave the company again. Another issue is that of potential foreign investors. In order to attract foreign investors, maybe the government can offer permanent residency to big-time investors as this is what is happening in a lot of other countries. Not only can this benefit the economy of Brunei as a whole but it can bring in a lot of foreign potential. All in all, a little competition would not hurt anyone. Instead the opposite is quite true, there can be no improvement if there is no competition. Hopefully these issues can be clarified and be dealt with. - Optimist |
| Hope to
see more local stewardess on RBA flights Hi to all readers, I've seen a few complaints about RBA in the BB. I'd like to ask why RBA is recruiting international, Green IC stewardess? I've seen a couple of international stewardess on board RBA flights. Why can't RBA recruit more locals to work than giving chances to foreigners. Neighbouring countries like Malaysia and Singapore only recruit Malaysians and Singaporeans and not others for their airlines. Why can't RBA follow the same rule? It's a great pleasure to see locals than foreigners on board. I hope RBA will do its best. - Hajah Monira |
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Query to Customs |
| Keep
children away from serious movies I would like to refer to the news item in the Borneo Bulletin dated June 17 concerning a ban on babies from cinemas in Norway. I think it is a good decision and Brunei should also start practising it. In the last four movies I've watched at a particular cinema, I saw parents bringing their small kids to movies, which were not meant for kids. Not long ago, I also saw kids being brought to watch an action-pack Hollywood film. It was in some ways a violent film and I don't understand how parents or cinema owners could actually allow young kids to watch such films. Recently, even babies were brought into cinemas. Babies have soft eardrums and the loud noise is not good for them. Furthermore, it disrupts the cinema experience for a lot of moviegoers because kids keep moving around here and there, making noises or crying. Sometimes it comes to a situation where watching movies at the cinema isn't any better than watching a movie at home! Why couldn't they leave their offspring at home? I would suggest that cinemas in Brunei, especially the top grade ones, look into this matter because I keep getting restless everytime this happens at the movies. - Annoyed |
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Ministry responds to food poisoning incidents We refer to the concerned Parent's letter, 'Safer food at school' (BB, June 4 2005). The concerned Parent has certainly raised an issue that we would like to give serious attention to and would like to thank the writer for sharing this concern. The Ministry of Education has been working closely with the Ministry of Health concerning the reported food poisoning incidents. Indeed, the matter is not taken lightly and thus, a thorough investigation has been conducted to identify the actual cause of distress. Based on the final report of the investigation, we would like to assure Concerned Parents that immediate action will be taken accordingly. The Ministry of Education regrets such incidents and, together with the Ministry of Health, has worked out immediate preventive measures to avoid such occurrence in the future. - Public Relations Unit - Ministry of Education |
| Stray
dog menace but whom to get help from? There have been a lot of complaints on stray dogs recently, but the situation seems to get worse and worse each year. In our area alone (around Kg Katok/Tungku) there are over 15 of them including puppies. They live in the near-by forest, breeding and growing in numbers quite rapidly. They usually come out at night, disturbing our things and making our compound dirty. They also take away and spoil our slippers, sandals, shoes, and even chair cushion. Furthermore, they bark late at night and also in the morning hours, disturbing our sleep. Sometimes we are very afraid to go to our neighbours' houses at night since these dogs wander in our area, and chase people. We have tried to call the authority, but until now there doesn't seem to be any concrete action. Once my friend called the Municipal department but was asked to forward the complaint to the fire services department. When the fire services department was called, they asked to contact the forestry department. It's as if nobody wants to take the responsibility. Are we living in a country that only protects its people against malaria, cholera, or SARS, but does nothing against stray dogs? We do not know who is actually responsible to take care of this issue. Can any of the relevant authority take some action? Please take this seriously. Dogs are sometimes very dangerous, especially when they are very hungry. There have been cases where dogs have attacked and killed small children. We do not want this to happen in our area, so please make the move now. - BSG, Gadong |
| RTB, air
Brunei Young Chefs Competition It would have been an aspiring programme to our younger generation if RTB had aired the Brunei Youth Chef Competition 2005, which probably would have increased their rating. It is such a shame to let this competition go unrecorded and not aired. - Asri Sahari |
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