| Achong Tanjong |
THE Brunei Darussalam’s contingent under the 13th International Monitoring Team (IMT-13) safely returned home after successfully completing their tour of duty in Mindanao, the Philippines.
A welcoming ceremony was held yesterday for the eight Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) personnel and one personnel from the Royal Brunei Police Force (RBPF). The 13th RBAF IMT contingent was led by Lieutenant Colonel Abidin bin Haji Timbang.
Pehin Datu Pekerma Jaya Major General Dato Paduka Seri Mohd Tawih bin Abdullah, Commander of the RBAF and ACP Haji Mohammad Hassan bin Pehin Penyurat Haji Awang Ahmad, Acting Commissioner of the Royal Brunei Police Force (RBPF), together with family members of the 13th IMT were at the Bolkiah Garrison Gymnasium to welcome the team.
Among those present were Captain (Rtd) Dato Paduka Abdul Rahman bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Defence (MinDef); Datuk Ghulam Jelani bin Khanizaman, High Commissioner of Malaysia to Brunei Darussalam; Meynardo LB Montealegre, the Ambassador of the Republic of Philippines to Brunei Darussalam; service commanders; the Deputy Permanent Secretary (Technology and Development) at MinDef; directors; commandants; Malaysian Defence Advisor; senior officers and staff of MinDef and RBAF, as well as a representative from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MoFAT).
Brunei has deployed a total of 144 RBAF personnel and eight RBPF personnel to the mission since its first deployment in 2004. Lieutenant Colonel Abidin in an interview said that they experienced numerous challenges during the mission but the team managed to overcome them. “We are very proud and happy to be part of the International Monitoring Team in Mindanao, the Philippines,” he added.
When asked on the response of the community there (Mindanao), he shared that it was very good not only for the Brunei team, but also for teams from other countries.
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