Let me preface this by saying: whoever coined that phrase is a fucking idiot, and very likely has vested interests in making adat sancrosanct; to keep them and their kin in power, no doubt.

Sepalui2 jelama yg rela darah daging nya sendiri jadi korban utk mempertahankan adat yg alum tantu baik utk semua lapisan masyarakat.

As for Brunei ever becoming a democratic country; I wouldn't hold my breath. The powers are very adept at self-preservation and power-hoarding. A people-led revolution is wishful thinking at best; Bruneians are still well-fed and kept dumb and apathetic like the cows before a nation-wide Korban event. The majority of Bruneians are nowhere close to being in the state of three missed meals, and even when the natives are restless enough to peacefully demand change, the ringleaders will hear a quiet knocking on their doors in the wee hours of the night.

Open that door and off you go, whisked into the gloom, never to be heard from again. The burgeoning crowds cowed into submission yet again, fearful of small rooms behind barbed-wire fences in an unassuming building in the heart of our capital.

Peasant revolt? With what arms? Against 3 fully loaded batallions in all of the major districts plus crack Gurkha support and the capability to summon F15s with a single phonecall? Were you expecting Amit Ajah to fend off M16 rounds with her bathroom slippers? Perhaps Tua Laki can muster some of his old silat moves and go 50 to 1 against burly Nepali men armed with kukris?

The carrot and the whip, my man. People are talking crazy with more volume nowadays because the carrot is getting smaller, mouldier and less orangey, meanwhile the whip has grown some interestingly sharp protuberances.

Even if we've managed to navigate all these troubled waters, do you trust the average Bruneian to make the right choices? Not the circle around you, whom may be more well-educated and worldly experienced than most. No, I'm talking about the true average Bruneian, who has never read nor experienced anything about politics (or indeed, politick) except for the circus that they watch whenever its election-time in Malaysia?

Bruneians whom, for generations, has always been led by a single force who charms them with the right noises and the small token gestures whilst simultaneously rug-pulling them at every opportunity?

Who's to say that they won't fall for another populist strongman-type leader, vowing to clean the paya, kick out the heathens, immigrants and building a wall of some sort? I daresay that the average Bruneian would be quite right-wing leaning in nature, perfect fodder for a Republican/Tory-type political party. What does that spell for our ailing non-tujuh rumpun, non-Muslim segment of society then?

Speaking of political parties, what about campaigning? Who's gonna have the gumption and the funds to try and sway the people to vote in their favour? Will there be lobbyists and campaign contributors too, and if so who would they likely be? Seems to me that it'll be the same old clique, same old members of the same old class just below the current ruling class, since they're the only ones who can afford that kind of shit in the first place. So did we just replace a single entropic entity with a whole host of chaebol-like oligarchs?

I can go on forever with this bullshit, but TL;DR - be careful what you wish for. I am all for societal change, but will society be willing to go through change on an unprecedented scale and all the 'growing pains' that will inevitably happen? Have we as a country reached the point where the collective has grown the collective balls to tolerate these growing pains?

The only way to win is to not play, I say.

The case is pretty simple. The RF game plan is to make the country’s economy stagnant, then make it as miserable as possible for the younger generation to not want to stay. People will leave the country, thus no chance for a revolt, less people to care for, less of the country’s sovereign money used, less headache and more money for them spend. Simple economics

How about it is time to be more selfish and think only of your future? Brunei is only a minority when it comes to the world stage which is increasingly global every second. You can put a lot of effort on a losing team and most likely will be put down by that very same team or you can be selfish and find a way to join a winning team?

I'm not that well versed in politics but I do worry about my country and slowly wawasan 35 is becoming well a joke. I love my country but at times moving to another country does come to mind from time to time.

I do agree revised tradition for modern times, but then again I guess old people with there not so open and "keras pala" mindset is a problem

There’s a reason absolute monarchs are far and few in between and why there’s so many democracies in the world

personally I don't really favour a democracy system. By definition, being a democratic may help build the idea that ushes the agenda of the majority. But the reality on the ground democracy would somewhat ended up in contradictories and inconsistencies. You can take Europe right now, which is currently at the verge of shifting right wings. Decades of being left doesn't even help with their housing and immigration problems, and major protests don't even seem to be heard. In Malaysia, different PM has on and off opinion on SG-Johor railway projects and of course, having to play safe to stay in government seats until general election.

Be it as it may, we may as well adopt a Singapore not-so democracy kind of system. At least meritocracy and intelligence will still be a thing within the party. To me, economic development (followed by HDI) is more important. and the current leadership, respectfully, is definitely not a game changer.

If we are to go for a vote, I can see Brunei will definitely shift to liberalism. It'll be a demographic younger population vs older population.

Outdated, unrealistic way of thinking/mindset this is. This is backwards thinking where people trying to justify that "its okay to not be modern and get left behind". See how stupid that sound. I dont care much about 'adat' especially if it hinders me from achieving/going forward or making things more complicated that it actually is, but that doesnt mean i dont RESPECT it. See if other people want to preserve it by all means do so, i can understand that. But why is it hard for them to understand that there are others who just simply dont see 'adat' as necessary/important. What good is 'adat' if it is holding you back in life? There are others who want to move forward in their lives and not be bound by "old ways of living". Sad truth but no one wants to face here is, 'adat' is nothing more than just another way of living but its in the PAST. And not everything thats in the past is worth preserving for the future. Some will try to, and thats okay. And its only FAIR to let other people who dont want to BE.Just them be. Dont go around attacking them by saying stuffs like "adat mesti diikut" or "nya urg tua2" bullshit like that.

Isu nya, bukan people don't want to change, but the clarity, and worse thing, yang macam c banar kan bawa orang mengubah system anie, boleh di percayai?

PRB try to change the system, in fact they got grassroot support, but when the rebellion failed, with almost every family in Brunei ada saudara mara kena tangkap, dimana leader nya? Di Philippines and di Indonesia. Yang sengsara? rakyat marhaen yang terikut dorang...

Effect of 1962, bukan one off, but until now. Yes we can label boomer because of their support to kerajaan macam membabi buta. Tapi they know and learn from history, when shit happens, yang support them is government jua. Bapa, abang, sepupu kana tahanan pasal memberontak, SOAS bagi elaun bantuan to the keluarga terlibat.

Ambil saja kes yang lari ke Canada because isu nya sama MORA. Apa support dari so called hero kitani di Brunei? I not sure kalau ada yang memberi sumbangan diam diam kali. Tapi if he decided to face the punishment, paling teruk pun 6 7 tahun keluar dari penjara and still can live in Brunei and kalau hidup merempat pun dan minta bantuan SKN, masih kerajaan bagi.

I disagree with this but makes me think also What if it suppose to be Adab not adat?

In the end both died.