In his closing speech Yang Berhormat Zainol bin Mohamed said the second meeting truly reflects the new dynamics in the journey of the Legislative Council (LegCo) session – from the debate on important motions that touch on the direction of the country, to questions that touch the heart of the people such as welfare, health services, education, employment and basic needs, all of which provide comprehensive picture of the current issues facing the people of all walks of life.
He sees an increasingly clear change that the meeting is moving towards becoming a more open, more substantive and more mature platform and more importantly, the people’s voices no longer go unanswered but are welcomed, answered and followed up with more organised improvement efforts.
Seeing this space as an opportunity to continue to improve the work system and the way information are delivered he believes that the next phase ensuring comprehensive follow-up action on the questions, suggestions and motions that have been submitted should be emphasised.
This is to ensure the people’s confidence in the system continues to be maintained and strengthened.
“With full gratitude and repentance, we once again express our gratitude to His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam for his guidance, commitment and confidence in the role of this Council.”
In Yang Berhormat Pengiran Haji Isa bin Pengiran Haji Aliuddin’s closing speech, he implied that to move forward with swift and systematic actions towards achieving the goals of Brunei Vision 2035, there must be an attitude of openness to answer any type of question and accept any proposals and ideas submitted from all parties including those submitted by the LegCo members. All of this is a foundation to take steps forward to implement appropriate and quick actions in order to achieve Brunei Vision 2035. He added, increased transparency will ensure that the people and the business community will get the information and answers they need.
Yang Berhormat Chong Chin Yee’s closing speech touched on the five sectors in the Brunei Darussalam’s Key Economic Developments (BKED) 2024, which have been identified as drivers of economic diversification collectively contribute about 23 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP). If the downstream oil and gas sector is excluded, the food sector and tourism sector contributes one per cent; information and communication techonology two per cent and services nine per cent and overall it only contributes 13 per cent to the GDP and this clearly requires urgent attention.
Education reform alone will not be enough hence she called on relevant agencies to publish clearer sectoral roadmaps and coordinated and benchmarked workforce development strategies and in this regard, it is important to state the annual growth rate targeted for each of the four sectors.
She calls for closer cooperation in the development of tourism infrastructure, stressing that Brunei’s economy cannot be entirely dependent on a small domestic market. Immediate action is needed to improve airport public buses and ensure safe, visitor-friendly land transport for tourism before the 22nd National Assembly.
Representing her generation – caring for aging parents, raising children, and facing rising living costs – she expressed concern over whether future generations will still enjoy free education, affordable health services, and low fuel prices.
For those in transnational marriages, the burden is even greater.
(News source: Borneo Bulletin)
