MUARA NAVAL BASE, Wednesday, 13 December 2023 – His Royal Highness Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah ibni His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, today officiated the Commissioning Ceremony of Patrol Vessel Kapal Diraja Brunei (KDB) AL-FARUQ which was held at Jetty Bravo, Muara Naval Base.
The Commissioning Ceremony of Patrol Vessel KDB AL-FARUQ coincided with the 9th Young Leaders’ Programme (YLP) between Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore, which Brunei Darussalam is hosting this year.
Upon arrival at Jetty Bravo, His Royal Highness was greeted by Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Retired) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Minister at the Prime Minister's Office and Minister of Defence II; Yang Mulia Major General Dato Paduka Seri Haji Muhammad Haszaimi bin Bol Hassan, Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF); and Captain Haji Mohamad Sarif Pudin bin Matserudin, RBN, Acting Commander of the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN).
Also present during the commissioning ceremony were members of the 9th YLP delegation from the Republic of Singapore, led by His Excellency Lawrence Wong, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance. The delegation includes His Excellency Teo Chee Hean, Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security; His Excellency Zaqy Mohamad, Senior Minister of State at the Ministry of Defence and also Ministry of Manpower; Mr Chan Heng Kee, Permanent Secretary (Defence) and Rear Admiral Sean Wat Jianwen, Chief of the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN).
The ceremony commenced with His Royal Highness receiving the Royal Salute and inspecting the parade comprising of 109 RBN personnel led by Lieutenant Commander Mohammad Shahrul Idham bin Haji Bongsu, RBN. His Royal Highness then proceeded to the Commissioning Dais, where the recitation of Surah Al-Fatihah was led by Lieutenant Colonel Abdul Mujib bin Haji Japar, Acting Director of RBAF Religious Directorate (JAMA'AT).
His Royal Highness then delivered the Commissioning Sabda and bestowed KDB AL-FARUQ with its Commissioning Pennant presented to Lieutenant Commander Khairul Anwar bin Pengiran Haji Abu Bakar, RBN, Commanding Officer of KDB AL-FARUQ. This was followed by the inaugural hoisting of the Commissioning Pennant and RBN Ensign, accompanied by the National Anthem. The commissioning was further blessed with the calling of the Azan by Lieutenant Ahmad Zubair bin Abdul Nasir and recitation of Doa Selamat by the Acting JAMA'AT Director, after which His Royal Highness was invited for a tour onboard KDB AL-FARUQ.
The ceremony ended with a group photograph session before proceeding to the RBN Officers' Mess for an executive session between His Royal Highness and Singapore 9th YLP delegation as well as key leaders from the Ministries of Defence, Armed Forces and Navies of Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore, which was followed by a Royal Luncheon.
The handing over of the ship from the RSN, previously known as RSS DAUNTLESS, is a testament of the close collaboration between the Armed Forces and Navies of Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore. The renaming of the ship from RSS DAUNTLESS to KDB AL-FARUQ, which is translated to "courageous” that refers to one of RBAF’s core values and is an essential element for RBN. This trait also builds a character with high integrity in defending Brunei Darussalam's maritime sovereignty.
The Commissioning Ceremony of KDB AL-FARUQ marks the completion of the Patrol Vessel Transfer Project between the RBN and RSN involving the handing over of two RSN Fearless-Class patrol vessels, where the first patrol vessel transfer, the KDB AS-SIDDIQ was commissioned on 21 March 2023. The success of this endeavour marked a significant milestone in developing and enhancing cooperation and defence diplomacy between Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore, whilst becoming a core part of the historic development of the RBN in particular, and RBAF as a whole.
DULI YANG TERAMAT MULIA PADUKA SERI PENGIRAN MUDA MAHKOTA PENGIRAN MUDA HAJI AL-MUHTADEE BILLAH, MENTERI KANAN DI JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI BERKENAN BERANGKAT KE UPACARA PENTAULIAHAN KAPAL PERONDA KAPAL DIRAJA BRUNEI AL-FARUQ
PANGKALAN MUARA, TENTERA LAUT DIRAJA BRUNEI, Rabu, 13 Disember 2023 – Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Paduka Seri Pengiran Muda Mahkota Pengiran Muda Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah ibni Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Menteri Kanan di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, hari ini berkenan berangkat ke Upacara Pentauliahan Kapal Peronda Kapal Diraja Brunei AL-FARUQ yang berlangsung di Jeti Bravo, Pangkalan Tentera Laut Muara.
Upacara Pentauliahan Kapal Peronda Kapal Diraja Brunei AL-FARUQ ini diadakan dan diselenggarakan dengan Program Pemimpin-Pemimpin Muda Ke-9 di antara Negara Brunei Darussalam dan Republik Singapura yang mana pada tahun ini dihoskan oleh Negara Brunei Darussalam.
Keberangkatan tiba Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Paduka Seri Pengiran Muda Mahkota di Jeti Bravo dijunjung oleh Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja Mejar Jeneral (Bersara) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri dan Menteri Pertahanan II; Yang Mulia Mejar Jeneral Dato Paduka Seri Haji Muhammad Haszaimi bin Bol Hassan, Pemerintah Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei (ABDB) dan Kepten Haji Mohamad Sarif Pudin bin Matserudin, TLDB, Pemangku Pemerintah Tentera Laut Diraja Brunei (TLDB).
Turut hadir semasa Upacara Pentauliahan tersebut ialah rombongan delegasi Program Pemimpin-Pemimpin Muda Ke-9 dari Republik Singapura, yang diketuai oleh Tuan Yang Terutama Lawrence Wong, Timbalan Perdana Menteri dan Menteri Kewangan. Ahli-ahli rombongan termasuk Tuan Yang Terutama Teo Chee Hean, Menteri Kanan dan Menteri Penyelaras Bagi Keselamatan Negara; Tuan Yang Terutama Zaqy Mohamad, Menteri Negara Kanan, Kementerian Pertahanan dan Kementerian Tenaga Manusia; Tuan Chan Heng Kee, Setiausaha Tetap (Pertahanan) dan Laksamana Muda Sean Wat Jianwen, Pemerintah Tentera Laut Republik Singapura (TLRS).
Upacara tersebut dimulakan dengan Duli Yang Teramat Mulia menerima Tabik Hormat Diraja dan seterusnya memeriksa Kawalan Kehormatan yang terdiri daripada 109 anggota TLDB diketuai oleh Leftenan Komander Mohammad Shahrul Idham bin Haji Bongsu, TLDB. Duli Yang Teramat Mulia seterusnya dijunjung berangkat ke Dais Pentauliahan, di mana bacaan Surah Al-Fatihah telah dibacakan oleh Leftenan Kolonel Abdul Mujib bin Haji Japar, Pemangku Pengarah Jabatanarah Agama ABDB (JAMA’AT).
Duli Yang Teramat Mulia kemudian mengurniakan Sabda Pentauliahan dan mengurniakan Commissioning Pennant kepada KDB AL-FARUQ yang diterima oleh Leftenan Komander Khairul Anwar bin Pengiran Haji Abu Bakar, TLDB, Pegawai Pemerintah KDB AL-FARUQ. Upacara dilanjutkan dengan pengibaran Commissioning Pennant dan panji-panji TLDB di atas KDB AL-FARUQ yang diiringi dengan lagu kebangsaan Negara Brunei Darussalam. Kemudian Duli Yang Teramat Mulia dijunjung bagi tinjauan kapal KDB AL-FARUQ, sejurus laungan Azan yang dikumandangkan oleh Leftenan Ahmad Zubair bin Abdul Nasir dan Doa Selamat dibacakan oleh Pemangku Pengarah JAMA'AT bagi memberkati pentauliahan KDB AL-FARUQ.
Upacara Pentauliahan KDB AL-FARUQ berakhir dengan sesi bergambar ramai dan seterusnya Duli Yang Teramat Mulia dijunjung berangkat ke Mes Pegawai TLDB bagi sesi eksekutif bersama rombongan Pemimpin-Pemimpin Muda Ke-9 dari Republik Singapura dan pemimpin-pemimpin utama Kementerian Pertahanan, Angkatan Bersenjata dan Tentera Laut Negara Brunei Darussalam dan Republik Singapura dan diteruskan dengan Majlis Santap Tengah Hari.
Penyerahan kapal peronda milik TLRS tersebut yang sebelum ini dikenali sebagai RSS DAUNTLESS adalah tanda penghargaan dan persahabatan hasil dari kerjasama erat di antara Angkatan Bersenjata dan Tentera Laut Negara Brunei Darussalam dan Republik Singapura. Perkataan AL-FARUQ yang dipilih dari bahasa Arab yang membawa maksud “berani” adalah merupakan salah satu nilai teras ABDB dan menjadi elemen penting bagi TLDB. Sifat ini juga membina perwatakan yang berintegriti tinggi dalam mempertahankan kedaulatan maritim Negara Brunei Darussalam.
Upacara pentauliahan KDB AL-FARUQ menandakan selesainya Projek Patrol Vessel Transfer di antara TLDB dan TLRS, yang melibatkan penyerahan dua buah kapal TLRS jenis Fearless-Class Patrol Vessel di mana kapal peronda pertama iaitu Kapal Peronda KDB AS-SIDDIQ telah pun ditauliahkan pada 21 Mac 2023. Kejayaan usaha ini merupakan peristiwa yang signifikan dan bermakna dalam meningkatkan dan mengukuhkan usaha kerjasama dan diplomasi pertahanan di antara Negara Brunei Darussalam dan Republik Singapura, yang juga menjadi lakaran bersejarah di dalam perkembangan TLDB khususnya, dan ABDB amnya.
