Daniel Lim
“Road safety is an integral part of the safety culture which we continuously inculcate in the Brunei Shell Joint Venture (BJSV) Companies and our business partners. It is also a key component of our community outreach initiative through our social investment programme.”
This was said by Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd (BSP) Head of HSE and Security Haji Osmera bin Haji Othman during the BSP Road Safety Roadshow at the Seria Energy Lab yesterday.
Minister of Transport and Infocommunications and Chairman of the National Road Safety Council (MKKJR) Pengiran Dato Seri Setia Shamhary bin Pengiran Dato Paduka Haji Mustapha was the guest of honour.
The roadshow was held to commemorate the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims and aims to raise awareness and encourage behavioural changes in road safety for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.
Haji Osmera said with a workforce of some 4,000 people in BSP, they believe that they have engrained the safety culture among their staff. “It means that we are making a positive difference in the Sultanate. Achieving this requires continuous engagement and effort. Our overarching road safety strategy is based on the United Nations Decade of Action which identifies key deliverables for each of the five pillars: the first is road safety management; second is safer road and mobility; third is safer road user; fourth is safer vehicle (BSP STL fleet); and fifth being Post Crash Response.”
Underpinning the concept are the three E’s of road safety – education, engineering and enforcement – which together form the strategy that BSP and the wider BJSV developed and implemented in a multi-pronged approach.
“Alhamdulillah, this resulted in the downward trend of road safety-related offences based on the BJSV companies’ performance indicators. Again, we remind ourselves, this doesn’t mean the job is done. We must keep the momentum, continuously improve further, and be aware of the trends and emerging risks.
“At the company level, one of our road safety activities for staff is the seatbelt check in BSP premises where the BSP Road Safety Committee scheduled leaders to designated checkpoints in BSP as early as 7am. We usually take the opportunity to also observe other aspects of safety such as the conditions of the tyres and so on.”
Meanwhile, Haji Osmera also noted that advanced driver monitoring systems are deployed at operational level, specifically in managing BSP’s land transport fleet and professional drivers.
Haji Osmera pointed out that at a broader and strategic level, BSP was grateful to work closely with the MKKJR and its members, as the support ensures that they were able to carry out their plans. “We are thankful to the MKKJR and our stakeholders in the Belait District because with their support, we have been able to carry out our plans such as the Panaga Roads Improvement Plan.”
Haji Osmera also added that BSP, in partnership with Brunei Shell Marketing Company Sdn Bhd (BSM) and Megamas Training Company Sdn Bhd, and together with BRCS, have been working to highlight the importance of road safety and promoting road safety behaviour among the youth, who are the most vulnerable road users between the ages of 18 and 39.
He also added that since the launch of the ‘Tell Everyone’ safety outreach programme on December 1, 2018 by Her Royal Highness Princess Hajah Masna, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Royal Patron of the MKKJR, in conjunction with World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, the efforts and initiatives have been made to ensure the success of the outreach programme.
The minister also visited the booths, where activities and exhibitions were held including the Artificial Intelligence Advanced driver assistant system, how to conduct proper vehicle checks, defensive driving, cycling safety and demonstration of BSP’s seatbelt convincer, with the latter located at the venue’s exterior parking lot.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications Ir Haji Mohammad Nazri bin Haji Mohammad Yusof, Deputy Commissioner of Police Dato Seri Pahlawan Sulaiman bin Alidin, Acting Belait District Officer Mohamad Yassin bin Haji Ahmed, and BSP Deputy Managing Director and Commercial Director Haji Mohd Azmi bin Haji Mohd Hanifah were also present.
