Day Nine: Feedback Is a Gift. So, Why Is No One Opening It?

KOPITALK LEGCO TRACKER  |  22nd Legislative Council Session

 

 

 

Day Nine: Feedback Is a Gift.

So, Why Is No One Opening It?

KopiTalk with MHO  •  Wednesday, 25 March 2026  •  22nd LegCo, Day Nine  |  Morning and Afternoon Sessions

 

 

She visited the rice farmers. She sat with them. She listened. They told her exactly what is wrong — and exactly what would help fix it. She brought those words into the chamber and called them what they are: a gift. Day Nine of LegCo. The nation has a plan for almost everything. The question is whether it is listening to the people already doing the work.

 

 

 

She did not send a survey. She did not wait for a report. She went to the fields.

 

Dayang Hajah Rosmawatty binti Haji Abdul Mumin visited rice farmers across Brunei Muara, Tutong, and Belait. She sat with them and held a dialogue. She came back with their words in her hands — not as statistics, but as the practical things they told her needed fixing. Then she brought those words into the Legislative Council chamber and ended her contribution with a line that deserves to sit near the centre of this entire session:

 

Feedback is a gift.

 

Three words. But they carry the weight of nine days of debate.

 

Because this session has spent nine days and a BND6.3 billion budget discussing what the country needs. And again and again, the people who know the answer most clearly are not always the ministers in the chamber. They are the farmers in the fields, the parents managing school runs alone, the families in Temburong driving past the one EV charging station that only works if you own the right brand of car. They are already giving their feedback — in their choices, their struggles, and their workarounds. The question is whether the system is treating it like the gift it says it is.

 

Day Nine was the first sitting after Hari Raya. The Yang Di-Pertua opened with a call for semangat berkobar-kobar — a burning spirit — to finish the work ahead. The session covered two ministries in Question Time and four in the Committee Stage across morning and afternoon sittings. It was dense, detailed, and at times candid in ways that earlier days were not. And woven through all of it was a single question that kept returning in different forms:

 

who is the system actually built for?

 

What Was Raised

 

The farmers who are already doing it right — and what they need

 

Brunei imports over 90 per cent of its rice. That figure alone should concentrate minds. And it has — the national rice self-sufficiency rate has improved from 4.7 per cent in 2017 to around 8 per cent in 2024. That improvement did not come from a policy document. It came from farmers who showed up, planted, and delivered. The top 20 farmers are earning between BND200,000 and close to BND1 million a year. The model works when it is properly supported.

 

But here is the paradox Rosmawatty brought into the chamber. The rice production project under the national development plan has a planned allocation of BND1.82 million. In the last financial year, only BND36,000 of that was spent.

 

That is not a rounding error.

 

That is a food security project running at about two per cent of its intended budget.

 

And when she sat with the farmers and asked them what they needed, they did not ask for grand policy changes. They asked for three things.

 

— More certified seed suppliers — right now, there are only three in the entire country, and supply is not enough to meet the programme's targets.

 

— More field visits from ministry officials — not inspections, but genuine engagement, where someone comes and listens to what is working and what is not.

 

— Stronger field leadership, so farmers at the grassroots level have a coordinator who can help solve problems without waiting months for a response.

 

These are not impossible things to provide. They do not require a new law or a major policy redesign.

 

They require attention.

 

Now place that alongside this: the government is preparing for Visit Brunei Year 2027 with a tourism budget that has nearly doubled from BND1.9 million to BND3.9 million. There is a task force for education tourism. A visit to Singapore is planned within two weeks to discuss bringing students here. Dedicated marketing pushes into North America, Europe, and the Middle East are underway. Health tourism packages are being developed with JPMC. Islamic tourism packages are already in motion.

 

None of that is wrong. Tourism matters. Economic diversification is urgent.

 

But the contrast is difficult to ignore.

 

Big ambitions tend to attract budgets, task forces, and movement.

 

The farmer growing rice to feed the country is still waiting on three seed suppliers and a project barely moving on paper.

 

The nation says food security is a priority.

 

The budget, at least for now, suggests a different tempo.

 

 

The model works when it is properly supported. The question is why support seems to arrive faster for large, visible initiatives than for the people already growing the food.

 

The child left between noon and five o'clock

 

Awang Amran bin Haji Maidin raised something on Day Nine that every working parent in Brunei will recognise immediately.

 

Current regulations only allow registered daycare centres to accept children up to three years old. Kindergarten runs half a day. That leaves a gap — children aged three to five who are too old for registered daycare but too young for a full school day. Working parents, particularly those without family nearby to help, are filling that gap with informal arrangements.

 

Here is the irony.

 

The regulation was designed to protect children. But in practice, it is pushing families toward arrangements that may offer less protection, not more. Because a registered, supervised daycare centre — the kind with trained staff, safety standards, and government oversight — cannot legally take their child. So they find someone who can. And that someone operates outside any regulatory framework at all.

 

Amran asked for the policy to be reviewed. He suggested a new category — after-school care for children aged four to six, with clear safety standards and supervision requirements.

 

It is a practical, common-sense solution.

 

The answer, however, did not yet offer the clarity many parents would have hoped for.

 

And so, for now, the parents are still the ones solving it.

 

One charging station. One brand. One resort.

 

Brunei has approximately 2,000 PHEV and EV vehicles registered as of January 2026. There are 40 charging stations and 45 charging points across the country. The transition to electric vehicles is real, and the numbers are growing.

 

In Temburong — the district the government is actively developing as an eco-tourism destination, the district connected to the mainland by a BND1.6 billion bridge — there is one EV charging station. It is at The Abode Resort and Spa. It only works for specific vehicle brands.

 

That is not a small detail.

 

That is the gap between a national ambition and the infrastructure that makes it usable.

 

If you drive to Temburong in an EV that is not the right brand, you are effectively on your own.

 

The minister acknowledged this and said more chargers will come as usage grows. That is probably true. But usage usually grows when infrastructure exists — not only after it does.

 

The digital ambition — and what sits underneath it

 

Day Nine's Question Time was almost entirely about digital transformation.

 

Public service satisfaction is at 84.4 per cent. Online service satisfaction at 79.2 per cent. Instagram reach for religious content increased elevenfold in a single year. A locally-built Brunei game, Tikus Tales, won silver at the ASEAN Digital Awards 2025. The e-sports team won seven medals, including gold at SUKMA 2024. The GenAI handbook for education was launched in September 2025. Sixty-six religious services have been mapped for digitisation.

 

Taken at face value, it is the picture of a country moving steadily into a digital future.

 

But the same sitting also heard a member raise the fact that the digital signatures law has a section — Part 10, governing Certification Authorities — that has not yet been enforced. The e-stamping system has been running since December 2022, but business processes at the land department and court registry still require people to show up at a counter.

 

And across the Committee Stage, the pattern that has run through this session kept reappearing:

 

The system is increasingly good at launching, mapping, and measuring activity.

 

It is still working on measuring whether that activity has meaningfully changed daily life.

 

That is not a dismissal of the effort. The effort is real and visible.

 

It is a question about what the numbers are actually measuring.

 

84.4 per cent customer satisfaction in a public service survey is a meaningful figure. But it sits alongside a rice project running at two per cent of its allocation and a childcare gap that working parents are solving informally.

 

The digital infrastructure is growing.

 

The question is whether it is reaching the people who need it most.

 

What the Answers Revealed

 

Day Nine had a different quality to its answers than the pre-Raya sittings. Ministers were more relaxed. Some exchanges had genuine warmth. The Yang Di-Pertua's remark at the opening — that he hoped members would return with a burning spirit — set a tone that held through most of the day.

 

The Primary Resources and Tourism Minister was candid about the export initiative. Twenty-nine companies have registered interest in exporting to Singapore. The domestic market is limited — the minister said so plainly.

 

But the feedback from the farming dialogue raised something the answer did not fully settle: you cannot export at scale if you cannot first grow at scale. And you cannot grow at scale if your seed supply is bottlenecked at three certified suppliers.

 

The Development Minister was honest about the limits of the chamber as a venue for certain kinds of questions. He endorsed the Yang Di-Pertua's gentle redirect to members who raised very specific local infrastructure issues — flood drainage in Tutong, water supply gaps in Brunei Muara — suggesting these are often better pursued through district offices and direct ministerial channels than through a budget committee sitting.

 

That is fair.

 

But it also points to a structural reality: the people most affected by these issues often do not know those channels exist, or do not feel confident using them. The chamber remains the one place where they know their representative is being heard.

 

The Religious Affairs Minister's response to halal certification deserves attention. There are tens of thousands of pending halal certification applications. The minister acknowledged this. A member proposed a dedicated halal authority to help clear the backlog and position Brunei more competitively in a global halal market worth between USD2.3 and USD2.8 trillion.

The idea is not new.

 

But the scale of the opportunity — and the scale of the backlog — are both growing. The distance between them is not closing fast enough.

 

The Culture, Youth and Sports Minister's response to the PKBN youth programme was one of the most direct of the day. Pehin Suyoi suggested extending the programme to job-seeking graduates as a structured six-month bridge — not just patriotism and character, but targeted skills, digital literacy, industry exposure, and mentorship.

 

The minister welcomed the idea but noted the cost is BND3,500 per participant.

 

That is not a small amount.

 

But it is also considerably less than the cost of a graduate who stays unemployed for another year.

 

What the Public Is Really Asking

 

— For the rice farmer: the feedback has been given. The seeds are insufficient, the visits are too rare, and the field coordination is weak. These are solvable problems. When will they be solved?

 

— For the working parent: the childcare gap is not a new discovery. Parents have been solving it informally for years, often in ways that offer their children less protection than a registered centre would. What is the timeline for a policy review?

 

— For the EV driver in Temburong: the bridge cost BND1.6 billion. The charging infrastructure was not integrated in any meaningful way. When investment and daily usability are this far apart, what is the coordination mechanism meant to close that gap?

 

— For the halal entrepreneur: the global halal market is worth trillions. Brunei's certification is internationally respected. But the backlog is tens of thousands of applications deep. Every month that passes is a month of lost opportunity.

 

— For the young person waiting for a job: the PKBN costs BND3,500 per participant to run a programme that, by the minister's own account, produces measurable, employer-confirmed improvements in attitude, discipline, and work readiness. Why is the programme not bigger?

 

The Signal of the Day

 

Day Nine was the day the session came back from Hari Raya and found the same questions still waiting.

 

Not because nothing had been done.

 

But because the work that matters most — the slow, consistent, field-level work of listening and responding — does not pause for public holidays.

 

The paradox Rosmawatty surfaced is this:

 

The country's food security strategy depends on farmers.

 

Not on investors, not on task forces, not on marketing campaigns — but on the people who wake up and plant things.

 

And those people are already giving the system clear, specific, actionable feedback about what they need to do more of — and what they are already doing well. The top 20 are earning up to a million ringgit a year. The model is proven. The bottlenecks are known.

 

Meanwhile, a tourism budget nearly doubles. A team flies to Singapore within two weeks. New markets are being opened in Europe and North America. These things are not wrong. They are exactly what economic diversification looks like in motion.

 

But the contrast reveals something real about how urgency is often allocated.

 

Large, visible, internationally-facing initiatives tend to move quickly.

 

Small, domestic, ground-level needs — three more certified seed suppliers, a policy update for childcare, a working charger in Temburong — often wait in a queue that seems to have no visible front.

 

DMAO has been asking across this entire session: who is still responsible after the answer is given?

 

Day Nine offers a sharper version of that question.

 

Not just who is responsible —

but who is listening?

 

Not only to the questions in the chamber,

but to the answers that are already out there — in the fields, in the homes, in the car that parks at Temburong's one charging station and finds it does not work for them.

 

The feedback is being given. Every day.

 

By the farmers who grow food.

 

By the parents who patch together childcare.

 

By the drivers navigating roads and systems not yet built for how people actually live.

 

Whether it is received as a gift — that is the measure of what this session will have been worth.

 

 

 

The session continues Thursday, 26 March 2026, at 9.00am.

 

The rice is still growing.

The feedback is still waiting.

The gift is still on the table.

 

And the real test is no longer whether the country knows what needs fixing.

It is whether the system is willing to keep saying feedback is valuable — while leaving so much of it unopened.

 

 

 

KopiTalk LegCo Tracker covers the 22nd Legislative Council session from a public-first perspective.

What was said, what mattered, and what the public is still waiting for.

 

 

  PARTI PEMBANGUNAN BANGSA (NDP) BRUNEI

DARI MEJA PENASIHAT

21 Mac 2026

Perang di Sana — Tapi Tempiasnya Sampai ke Rumah Kita

Apa Erti Perang AS-Israel-Iran Kepada Setiap Warga Brunei

Gambar-gambar yang mengalir dari Iran, Israel, dan Teluk Parsi mungkin terasa jauh. Konflik di bumi orang. Peperangan antara kuasa-kuasa besar yang tidak ada kena-mengena dengan kita. Itulah sangkaan sebahagian daripada kita. Namun, sangkaan itu silap. Apa yang sedang berkecamuk di Timur Tengah hari ini akan mengetuk pintu rumah kita juga. Ia akan terserlah pada harga barang keperluan di pasar raya, pada bil elektrik, pada tambang penerbangan untuk mengunjungi sanak-saudara di perantauan — dan yang paling berat sekali, pada kewangan sebuah kerajaan yang telah sekian lama menanggung beban yang kian bertambah bagi pihak rakyatnya.

Perang AS-Israel-Iran 2026 bukan sekadar krisis serantau. Ia adalah gegaran struktur kepada ekonomi dunia — dan Brunei berdiri tepat di laluan ribut itu. Kenyataan ini diterbitkan bukan untuk menebar ketakutan, tetapi untuk menyedarkan. Sebagai warga Brunei, kita berhak mengetahui hakikat yang sedang kita hadapi — dan wajib bersedia menghadapinya.

APA YANG SEDANG BERLAKU — DAN MENGAPA IA PENTING

Pada 28 Februari 2026, Amerika Syarikat dan Israel melancarkan serangan udara mengejut ke atas Iran, mengorbankan Pemimpin Tertinggi negara itu dan mencetuskan gelombang serangan balas peluru berpandu serta dron Iran merentasi seluruh rantau. Negara-negara Teluk — Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Arab Saudi, dan UAE — semuanya tidak terlepas dari tempias serangan itu. Menjelang Hari ke-21 konflik ini, lebih 1,400 rakyat Iran telah gugur, 18,000 orang awam cedera, dan 204 kanak-kanak maut. Tiga juta rakyat Iran terpaksa meninggalkan tempat tinggal mereka.

Iran membalas dengan menutup Selat Hormuz — laluan laut yang sempit itu, yang setiap harinya dilalui kira-kira 20 juta tong minyak, serta satu perlima daripada bekalan gas asli cecair dunia. Laluan itu kini secara hakikinya telah tersumbat. Akibatnya sedang mengalir deras merentasi ekonomi dunia, dengan kelajuan yang sepatutnya membimbangkan setiap orang daripada kita.

APA YANG TELAH DISUARAKAN DI DEWAN RAKYAT KITA

Perang ini tidak berlalu tanpa perhatian di dewan perundangan kita sendiri. Persidangan Pertama Majlis Mesyuarat Negara (MMN) Ke-22 yang bermula pada 12 Mac 2026 telah mendengar dua kenyataan yang sarat makna — dan kedua-duanya wajar mendapat perhatian seluruh rakyat.

MENTERI LUAR NEGERI II — MMN KE-22, 16 MAC 2026 Ketika berucap dalam perbahasan Rang Undang-Undang Bekalan, Menteri Luar Negeri II tidak membataskan diri kepada kesopanan diplomatik semata-mata. Beliau menamakan perang itu dengan terang. Beliau menyatakan penolakan tegas Brunei terhadap tindakan tentera ke atas Republik Islam Iran. Beliau mengesahkan bahawa serangan balas telah menular ke negara-negara jiran Iran — dan bahawa beliau sendiri telah menghubungi menteri luar negeri tujuh buah negara dalam tempoh yang singkat sesudah itu: Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Arab Saudi, Jordan, dan UAE, bagi menyampaikan keprihatinan mendalam dan perasaan setiakawan Brunei. Namun satu ayat beliau — ringkas, padat — pasti telah menghentikan degupan jantung setiap ibu bapa, suami isteri, dan adik-beradik yang mempunyai orang tersayang di luar negeri: "Setakat hari ini, seramai 760 rakyat Brunei sedang berada di rantau Timur Tengah. Mereka telah dinasihatkan agar sentiasa berwaspada dan mengambil semua langkah berjaga-jaga yang perlu. Kementerian sedang memantau keadaan." Bagi keluarga 760 orang itu — pekerja di Teluk, pelajar di Jordan, warga Brunei yang menunaikan Umrah — itu bukan sekadar kenyataan dasar luar negeri. Itu adalah sesuatu yang menyentuh hati sanubari. Itulah suara sebuah kerajaan yang berkata kepada rakyatnya: kami tahu di mana orang-orang tersayang anda berada, dan kami sentiasa memerhati.

 

MENTERI KEWANGAN DAN EKONOMI II — MMN KE-22, 14 MAC 2026 Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, semasa membentangkan Rang Undang-Undang Bekalan BND6.3 bilion bagi Tahun Kewangan 2026/2027, berterus-terang mengenai kedudukan fiskal Brunei yang terdedah kepada kejutan luar: "Ketidakpastian ekonomi global — yang dipengaruhi oleh ketegangan geopolitik di Timur Tengah, perubahan dalam struktur perdagangan global, prospek pertumbuhan global yang sederhana serta cabaran perubahan iklim — memerlukan kerajaan mengambil langkah-langkah yang berhati-hati dan strategik sambil memastikan negara mengekalkan kestabilan makroekonomi dan ketahanan fiskal." Beliau selanjutnya mengesahkan bahawa kerajaan akan mengekalkan subsidi ke atas beras dan bahan api, mengiktiraf peranan subsidi itu dalam melindungi rakyat daripada tekanan inflasi — namun turut menegaskan bahawa gangguan rantaian bekalan global dan ketidaktentuan harga minyak antarabangsa, yang dicetuskan oleh ketegangan geopolitik, terus melanda ekonomi seluruh dunia. Defisit belanjawan yang diunjurkan bagi TK 2026/2027 ialah BND2.72 bilion — jurang antara perbelanjaan BND6.3 bilion dan hasil yang diunjurkan sebanyak BND3.53 bilion. Hasil minyak dan gas telah merosot dengan ketara, daripada BND1.93 bilion kepada BND1.499 bilion. Angka-angka ini dibentangkan sebelum perang Iran semakin mengguncang pasaran tenaga global. Perang Iran sejak itu telah menjadikan kedudukan fiskal yang sudah mencabar itu jauh lebih membimbangkan.

 

Kedua-dua kenyataan ini, jika diteliti bersama, menyampaikan satu mesej yang jelas: kerajaan sedar akan keseriusan keadaan ini. Persoalannya ialah sama ada kesedaran itu akan diterjemahkan kepada perbahasan awam yang terbuka, bertanggungjawab, dan bermakna — dan itulah sebabnya NDP menyeru agar perkara ini diletakkan secara rasmi di hadapan Majlis Mesyuarat Negara.

SERUAN UNTUK PERBAHASAN TERBUKA DI MAJLIS MESYUARAT NEGARA

Parti Pembangunan Bangsa (NDP) menyeru Majlis Mesyuarat Negara agar memperuntukkan masa yang khusus dalam persidangan semasa atau akan datang untuk mengadakan perbahasan berstruktur mengenai impak ekonomi dan fiskal perang Iran 2026 terhadap Negara Brunei Darussalam.

Ini bukan seruan untuk menabur kebimbangan. Ini adalah seruan untuk akauntabiliti dan ketelusan. Rakyat Brunei berhak mendapat jawapan yang jelas dan rasmi bagi soalan-soalan berikut:

•    Apakah penilaian kerajaan mengenai tempoh harga minyak global akan kekal tinggi — dan berapakah anggaran kos tambahan kepada belanjawan subsidi bahan api bagi setiap bulan harga minyak Brent kekal melebihi AS$100 setong?

 

•   Apakah langkah-langkah kecemasan yang tersedia bagi melindungi simpanan makanan strategik dan rantaian bekalan Brunei sekiranya Selat Hormuz terus tersumbat melebihi jangka masa yang pendek?

 

•    Berapa lama rejim subsidi semasa mampu dipertahankan dalam keadaan harga tenaga global yang tinggi sebelum rizab fiskal negara terhakis — dan apakah ambang yang akan memaksa kerajaan menilai semula dasar ini?

 

•    Apakah rancangan kerajaan bagi 760 rakyat Brunei yang kini berada di Timur Tengah, dan apakah protokol pemindahan yang telah disediakan sekiranya konflik meningkat dengan lebih mendadak?

 

•    Memandangkan belanjawan TK 2026/2027 digubal sebelum tercetusnya konflik ini, adakah kerajaan bercadang membentangkan belanjawan tambahan atau rangka kerja fiskal yang disemak bagi mencerminkan realiti global yang telah berubah?

MMN adalah dewan perbincangan tertinggi Brunei. Sebagaimana yang diingatkan oleh titah semasa pembukaan Persidangan Ke-22, dewan itu sepatutnya berfungsi bukan sekadar sebagai upacara tahunan, tetapi sebagai gelanggang dialog yang membina dan perbincangan isu-isu hakiki yang menyentuh kehidupan rakyat dan masa depan negara. Tiada isu yang lebih nyata, atau lebih mendesak, daripada isu yang sedang kita hadapi hari ini.

TEKANAN YANG TERSEMBUNYI: SUBSIDI DAN SEDEKAD DEFISIT

Ada warga Brunei yang mungkin berasa tenang: harga petrol di pam tidak berubah. Bahan api masih disubsidi. Kehidupan nampaknya berjalan seperti biasa. Ketenangan itu, walaupun dapat dimaklumi, menyembunyikan satu hakikat yang getir — hakikat yang setiap warganegara yang prihatin wajib memahami.

Apabila harga minyak mentah global melonjak kepada $110 atau $120 setong, pengguna di stesen petrol tidak merasainya — kerana kerajaan menyerap selisih harga itu. Namun kerajaan sungguh-sungguh merasakannya. Setiap liter bahan api bersubsidi yang dijual di Brunei pada harga di bawah pasaran adalah satu liter yang dibayar oleh kerajaan dari perbendaharaan sendiri. Dan apabila harga global terus menjulang, tanggungan itu semakin berat dari hari ke hari.

Ini penting sekali kerana Brunei telah menanggung defisit belanjawan selama lebih satu dekad. Tujuh kali kekurangan belanjawan dalam sepuluh tahun kewangan yang lalu. Defisit TK 2026/2027 diunjurkan pada BND2.72 bilion — dan unjuran itu dibuat sebelum perang Iran tercetus, sebelum harga minyak melangkaui $100 setong. Defisit fiskal konsolidasi sudah mencecah 13.3% daripada KDNK pada 2024, merosot daripada 11.9% tahun sebelumnya. Dan 75% daripada hasil kerajaan bergantung kepada minyak dan gas — sektor yang kini dilanda pergolakan yang tidak menentu.

 

REALITI FISKAL BRUNEI — SEPINTAS LALU   •    Defisit belanjawan dalam 7 daripada 10 tahun kewangan yang lalu — masalah struktur, bukan kitaran semata-mata   •    Defisit TK 2026/2027: BND2.72 bilion — angka yang digubal sebelum perang Iran tercetus   •   Defisit fiskal: 13.3% daripada KDNK (2024), semakin parah dari tahun ke tahun   •    Hasil minyak dan gas: merosot daripada BND1.93 bilion kepada BND1.499 bilion — sebelum perang   •    Belanjawan subsidi dikira pada ~AS$80 setong — harga Brent kini melangkaui $100   •    Defisit dibiayai daripada rizab fiskal yang terkumpul semasa zaman kegemilangan minyak — rizab itu ada hadnya

 

Harga petrol di pam mungkin tidak berubah esok. Tetapi setiap hari ia dikekalkan pada harga buatan sementara harga global terus membara, kerajaan Brunei membayar selisih itu dari perbendaharaan yang sudah semakin terhakis selama satu dekad. Itulah kos yang setiap warga Brunei perlu fahami — kerana lambat-laun, dalam satu cara atau cara yang lain, ia pasti akan pulang kepada kita.

CARA-CARA LAIN PERANG INI MENGETUK PINTU WARGA BRUNEI

•       Harga makanan akan naik. Brunei mengimport lebih 90 peratus daripada keperluan makanannya. Apabila kos bahan api global melonjak, begitu jugalah kos pengangkutan, penyejukan, baja, dan input pertanian. Harga gandum di peringkat dunia sudah pun meningkat. Makanan di atas meja anda menempuh perjalanan yang jauh sebelum sampai ke sini — dan perjalanan itu kini semakin mahal.

 

•    Rantaian bekalan berada di bawah tekanan yang teruk. Syarikat-syarikat petrokimia di seluruh Asia telah mengisytiharkan force majeure. Kilang-kilang penapisan di Singapura dan Malaysia telah mengurangkan pengeluaran. Kira-kira 20,000 anak kapal terkandas di Teluk. Barangan pengguna, alat ganti, elektronik — semuanya akan terjejas dan semakin mahal.

 

•    Perjalanan udara lebih mahal dan terganggu. Ruang udara Timur Tengah ditutup. Syarikat-syarikat penerbangan terpaksa mengubah laluan penerbangan, menambah waktu dan kos bahan api bagi setiap perjalanan. Harga minyak jet telah lebih daripada dua kali ganda. Bagi warga Brunei — pelajar di perantauan, keluarga yang ingin menjenguk orang tersayang, pekerja dalam transit — ini adalah kos yang terasa langsung di kocek.

 

•    Jiran-jiran ASEAN kita sudah pun dalam keadaan kecemasan. Filipina telah beralih kepada minggu kerja empat hari bagi kakitangan kerajaan. Thailand mengharamkan eksport minyak. Vietnam menggunakan dana penstabilan bahan api. Indonesia berdepan dengan pelanggaran had defisit belanjawan. Mereka adalah rakan dagang dan saudara serantau Brunei — apabila ekonomi mereka lemah, ekonomi kita turut menanggung padahnya.

PENGAJARAN YANG TIDAK BOLEH KITA ABAIKAN

Krisis ini tidak melahirkan kelemahan Brunei. Ia hanya telanjangkannya — sekali lagi.

Sebuah perang di Timur Tengah seharusnya tidak mampu menggugat ketahanan makanan atau kestabilan kewangan sebuah negara yang dikurniakan Allah dengan minyak, gas, dan kekayaan sumber alam yang melimpah-ruah. Namun demikianlah keadaan kita hari ini. Lebih 90 peratus bergantung kepada import makanan. Defisit belanjawan yang berstruktur, berterusan lebih satu dekad. Ekonomi yang masih terlalu banyak bergantung kepada hasil hidrokarbon. Rejim subsidi yang dibina atas andaian harga minyak yang sudah jauh ketinggalan zaman. Ini bukan takdir. Ini adalah hasil daripada keputusan-keputusan dasar yang ditunda terlalu lama.

Wawasan 2035 direka khusus untuk menangani kelemahan-kelemahan ini. Menteri Kewangan dan Ekonomi II sendiri telah meletakkan belanjawan semasa di bawah tema lima tahun: 'Bersama Menjayakan Wawasan Brunei 2035' — merumuskan ini sebagai dekad penentu yang akan mencorak arah tuju negara. Rumusan itu tepat. Tetapi dekad yang penentu menuntut tindakan yang sepadan dengan keperluannya — bukan sekadar berjimat-cermat atas landasan yang sama, yang oleh pengakuan kerajaan sendiri, sudah tidak mampan. Kemendesakan reformasi sebenar tidak pernah sepenting hari ini.

APA YANG BOLEH DILAKUKAN OLEH WARGA BRUNEI SEKARANG

Walaupun kita tidak berkuasa mengawal peristiwa di Teluk Parsi, ada tindakan yang boleh kita lakukan dengan bijaksana di sini, di tanah air kita sendiri:

 

•    Berbelanja dengan berhemah. Elakkan pembelian secara panik. Namun rancangkanlah perbelanjaan isi rumah dengan jangkaan yang realistik bahawa kos sara hidup akan lebih tinggi dalam minggu dan bulan-bulan mendatang.

 

•    Kurangkan penggunaan bahan api yang tidak perlu. Gabungkan perjalanan, berkongsi kenderaan seboleh mungkin. Ingatlah — setiap liter yang dijimatkan adalah satu liter kurang yang terpaksa ditanggung oleh kerajaan dari rizab yang sudah tersepit.

 

•    Sokong hasil dan perniagaan tempatan. Semakin banyak kita membeli makanan yang ditanam secara tempatan dan menyokong usahawan tempatan, semakin teguh daya tahan kita sebagai sebuah masyarakat tatkala rantaian bekalan global terganggu.

 

•   Saring maklumat dengan teliti. Maklumat palsu semasa krisis melahirkan kepanikan dan kemudaratan yang sebenar. Pastikan kesahihan sebelum dikongsi. Keadaan ini sudah cukup serius tanpa ditambah dengan fitnah dan tokok-tambah.

 

•    Desak wakil-wakil anda bertanggungjawab. Tanyakan apakah langkah-langkah kecemasan yang tersedia. Tanyakan mengenai simpanan makanan dan bahan api strategik negara. Tanyakan apakah rancangan bagi membendung defisit struktur sebelum bantal fiskal negara habis. Tanyakan tentang keselamatan warga Brunei di Timur Tengah. Ini adalah soalan-soalan yang sah, yang berhak dikemukakan oleh setiap rakyat — dan MMN wujud tepat bagi menjawabnya.

Dunia sedang melalui salah satu detik paling berbahaya dan paling mengguncang ekonomi dalam satu generasi. Negara-negara kecil seperti Brunei tidak menyulut api-api ini — tetapi kita boleh terbakar olehnya jika kita tidak berwaspada dan tidak bersedia. Pertahanan yang paling ampuh adalah kesedaran yang jernih, kehematan yang bijaksana, perpaduan yang kukuh, dan keberanian untuk mengakui kelemahan struktur yang sudah terlalu lama kita pikul dalam diam.

Harga di pam mungkin bertahan hari ini. Persoalan yang perlu dijawab Brunei — di dewan Majlis Mesyuarat Negara mahupun di ruang awam — ialah: hingga bila, dan dengan kos apa kepada hari esok?

Semoga Allah melindungi negara kita, memberi petunjuk kepada para pemimpin kita, dan mengurniakan kesabaran serta ketabahan kepada seluruh rakyat di zaman penuh kemelut ini.

Dari Meja Penasihat | KopiTalk with MHO

KOPITALK WITH MHO

Malai Hassan Othman

21 March 2026

A War Far Away — But Its Cost Hits Home

What the US-Israel-Iran War Means for Brunei

 

The images coming out of Iran, Israel, and the Gulf may feel distant — conflicts in faraway lands between powerful nations that have nothing to do with us. That comfort is an illusion. What is unfolding in the Middle East today will arrive at Brunei's doorstep. It will show up in the price of everyday goods at the supermarket, in the electricity bill, in the airfare to visit family abroad — and, most critically, in the fiscal health of a government that has been quietly shouldering a growing burden on behalf of its people for over a decade.

The 2026 US-Israel-Iran war is not just a regional crisis. It is a structural shock to the global economy — and Brunei sits squarely in its path. This column is written not to alarm, but to lay out the realities clearly, as they stand on Day 21 of a conflict that shows no sign of swift resolution.

WHAT IS HAPPENING — AND WHY IT MATTERS

On 28 February 2026, the United States and Israel launched surprise airstrikes on Iran, killing the Supreme Leader and triggering a wave of retaliatory Iranian missile and drone strikes across the region. Gulf states — Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE — have all been struck. By Day 21, over 1,400 Iranians have been killed, 18,000 civilians injured, and 204 children are dead. Three million Iranians have been displaced.

Iran's response has been to close the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow chokepoint through which roughly 20 million barrels of oil per day, and one-fifth of the world's liquefied natural gas supply, normally passes. That waterway is now effectively shut. The consequences are cascading across the world economy at a pace that should concern every citizen of every small, trade-dependent nation — including ours.

WHAT OUR OWN LEGISLATURE HAS ALREADY HEARD

This war did not go unnoticed in Brunei's own halls of governance. The 22nd Session of the Legislative Council, which opened on 12 March 2026, has already heard two statements that deserve far wider public attention than they have received.

THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS II — 22nd LEGCO, 16 MARCH 2026 Speaking during the Supply Bill debate, the Minister of Foreign Affairs II did not confine himself to diplomatic pleasantries. He named the war. He stated Brunei's formal condemnation of the military actions against the Islamic Republic of Iran. He confirmed that retaliatory strikes had extended to Iran's neighbours — and that he had personally contacted the foreign ministers of seven countries in the days that followed: Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the UAE, to convey Brunei's deep concern and solidarity. "As of today, 760 Bruneian nationals are currently in the Middle East region. They have been advised to remain vigilant and take all necessary precautions. The ministry is monitoring the situation." For the families of those 760 people — workers in the Gulf, students in Jordan, Bruneians on Umrah — that was not a foreign policy statement. That was personal. It was the sound of a government saying to its people: we know where your loved ones are, and we are watching.

 

THE 2ND MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMY — 22nd LEGCO, 14 MARCH 2026 Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, presenting the BND6.3 billion Supply Bill for FY 2026/2027, was direct about Brunei's fiscal exposure to external shocks: "Global economic uncertainties — influenced by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, changes in global trade structures, moderate global growth prospects and the challenges of climate change — require the government to adopt cautious and strategic measures while ensuring the nation maintains macroeconomic stability and fiscal resilience." He further confirmed that subsidies on rice and fuel will be maintained — a commitment made against a projected deficit of BND2.72 billion, with oil and gas revenue already fallen from BND1.93 billion to BND1.499 billion. These were pre-war figures. The Iran war has since made an already precarious fiscal position considerably more so.

 

Both statements, taken together, tell us something important: the government is alert to what is happening. The question worth pressing — and that I raise here as a matter of public interest — is whether that alertness will translate into the kind of open, substantive debate that the moment demands.

THE CASE FOR A LEGCO DEBATE

The titah at the opening of the 22nd LegCo Session was clear in its intent: the annual sitting should serve not merely as a formal gathering, but as an important platform for constructive dialogue and the discussion of real issues affecting the nation and its people. It is difficult to think of a more real or more pressing issue than the economic and fiscal impact of an active war on Brunei's primary export market, energy infrastructure, and supply chains.

There are questions the public is entitled to have answered — on the floor of the chamber, on the record:

•    What is the projected additional cost to the fuel subsidy budget for every month that Brent crude remains above US$100 per barrel — and how long can that cost be absorbed before policy must change?

•    What contingency measures exist for Brunei's strategic food reserves and supply chains should the Strait of Hormuz remain disrupted beyond weeks into months?

•    What is the threshold — in oil price, in deficit figure, in reserve depletion — that would compel a formal review of the subsidy regime?

•   What evacuation protocols are in place for the 760 Bruneian nationals currently in the Middle East, should the conflict escalate further?

•    Given that the FY 2026/2027 budget was formulated before this conflict erupted, does the government intend to table a supplementary budget or revised fiscal framework reflecting the changed global reality?

These are not hostile questions. They are the questions a responsible legislature asks — and that a well-informed public deserves to hear answered.

THE HIDDEN PRESSURE: SUBSIDIES AND A DECADE OF DEFICITS

Here is what many Bruneians may not immediately grasp: the fact that petrol prices at the pump have not changed is not evidence that Brunei is insulated from this shock. It is evidence that the government is absorbing the shock on the public's behalf — and doing so from a fiscal position that was already under strain before the first missile was fired.

When global crude prices spike to $110 or $120 per barrel, every litre of subsidised fuel sold in Brunei below market rate is a litre the government pays for out of its own pocket. As global prices soar, that pocket grows heavier by the day — and it is a pocket that has been running on deficit for over a decade.

The numbers are worth stating plainly. Brunei recorded budget shortfalls in seven of the past ten financial years. The FY 2026/2027 deficit is projected at BND2.72 billion — before the war. The consolidated fiscal deficit stood at 13.3% of GDP in 2024. Oil and gas revenues — which account for 75% of government income — have been falling. The subsidy budget was calibrated against oil at around US$80 per barrel. Brent crude is now trading above $100 and Goldman Sachs warns it may stay there through 2027.

BRUNEI'S FISCAL POSITION — THE NUMBERS •       Budget deficit in 7 of the past 10 financial years — structural, not cyclical •    FY 2026/2027 projected deficit: BND2.72 billion — a pre-war estimate •    Fiscal deficit: 13.3% of GDP (2024), worsening year on year •    Oil and gas revenue: down from BND1.93 billion to BND1.499 billion — pre-war •    Subsidy budget calibrated at ~US$80/barrel — Brent now above $100 •    Deficits financed from finite fiscal reserves — not external borrowing, but not unlimited

 

The pump price may not change tomorrow. But every day it stays artificially low while global prices remain elevated, Brunei's government is paying the difference out of a wallet that has been getting thinner for a decade. That is a cost that will eventually come home — one way or another.

THE WIDER REACH OF THIS WAR

The fiscal pressure is the least visible impact. The others are more immediate.

•       Food prices will rise. Brunei imports over 90% of its food. Higher fuel costs mean higher shipping, refrigeration, fertiliser, and agricultural input costs. Global wheat prices have already moved. The food on your table is getting more expensive to bring here.

•    Supply chains are fracturing. Petrochemical companies across Asia have declared force majeure. Refineries in Singapore and Malaysia have cut output. Around 20,000 seafarers are stranded in the Gulf. Consumer goods, spare parts, and electronics will all be affected.

•    Air travel is costlier and disrupted. Middle Eastern airspace is closed. Airlines are rerouting flights, adding hours and fuel costs to every journey. Jet fuel prices have more than doubled. For Bruneians with family abroad, students overseas, or workers in transit, this is an immediate out-of-pocket reality.

•    Our ASEAN neighbours are already in crisis mode. The Philippines has moved to a four-day government work week. Thailand has banned oil exports. Vietnam is drawing down its fuel stabilisation fund. Indonesia faces a budget deficit breach. When our trading partners and regional neighbours slow down, Brunei does not remain untouched.

THE STRUCTURAL VULNERABILITY THIS CRISIS EXPOSES

This crisis did not create Brunei's vulnerabilities. It merely exposed them — again.

A war in the Middle East should not be able to threaten the food security or fiscal stability of a nation endowed with oil, gas, and abundant natural resources. And yet, here we are. Over 90% food import dependency. A structural budget deficit that has persisted for more than a decade. An economy overwhelmingly reliant on hydrocarbon revenues. A subsidy regime calibrated against oil prices that no longer reflect reality. These are not acts of God. They are policy outcomes, accumulated through years of deferred reform.

The 2nd Minister of Finance and Economy has himself framed the current budget under the theme: 'Together Achieving Wawasan Brunei 2035' — describing this as the decisive final decade that will shape the country's direction. He is right. But a decisive decade demands decisive action — not merely prudent management of an existing trajectory that, by the government's own admission, is fiscally unsustainable. The urgency of genuine economic diversification, food security investment, and structural reform has never been clearer than it is today.

WHAT BRUNEIANS CAN DO IN THE MEANTIME

While the guns fire elsewhere, there are practical things every household and every citizen can do:

•    Plan ahead financially. The cost of living will be higher in the weeks and months ahead. Plan your household budget accordingly. Avoid panic buying — it inflates the very prices you are trying to escape.

•     Use fuel wisely. Consolidate trips, carpool where possible. Every litre saved is one less litre the government subsidises from already strained reserves.

•    Buy local. Support locally grown food and local businesses. Community resilience is built one purchase at a time, not only through government policy.

•    Verify before sharing. Misinformation during a crisis amplifies panic and causes real harm. The situation is serious enough without exaggeration.

•    Ask questions of those in authority. What are the contingency plans? What are the strategic reserves? What happens to subsidies if oil stays above $100 into 2027? What is the plan for Bruneians stranded or at risk in the Middle East? A government that is asked good questions gives better answers.

Small nations do not start these fires. But we can be burned by them — especially when we have spent years deferring the reforms that would make us more resilient. The war in the Middle East is a tragedy for those living it. For Brunei, it is also a mirror. What we see in that mirror should prompt not just concern, but action.

The pump price may hold today. The harder question — the one that belongs in the Legislative Council chamber and in every serious public conversation — is: for how long, and at what cost to tomorrow?

May Allah protect our nation, guide our leaders with wisdom, and grant patience and resilience to our people in these uncertain times.

Malai Hassan Othman is a journalist, columnist, political advisor, and Chairman of the NDP Advisory Board. He writes the KopiTalk with MHO column.