Abdul Jalil Ahmad

Abdul Jalil's early years were spent in Kampong Ayer, where he remained until he enlisted at the recruiting office of Bolkiah Camp of the Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (RBMR) in 1972.^[1] On 21 February 1972, when RBN was still known as 1st Boat Company RBMR (ALP AMDB), Abdul Jalil enlisted in the RBMR. He was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant on 13 December 1973. Both the Royal College of Defence Studies and the Britannia Royal Naval College at Dartmouth trained him to become an executive officer.^[2] He spent three months in the Mediterranean Sea serving on board the British warship HMS Intrepid (L11). This is in addition to making visits to cities like Gibraltar, Malta, Famagusta, Istanbul, Athens, and Naples.^[1]

Upon completing his training, Abdul Jalil was assigned to the 30-person crew KDB Pahlawan as a gunnery and navigation officer.^[1] He organised a missile launch exercise utilising SS.11 and SS.12 at the time, using Pelong Rocks as the target.^[2] He took on his first command as KDB Masna's commander in 1975, a position he maintained for 23 years. After his time on KDB Masna, Abdul Jalil was given honorary command of KDB Seteria.^[1]

In Brunei's waters in the early 1970s, Abdul Jalil came across illegal immigrant ships, particularly from Vietnam. As a result, all ships in the fleet at the time were always on guard duty. During one of his patrols, the ship Abdul Jalil was aboard dragged a boat carrying illegal immigrants for security reasons. Unfortunately, the towing line had to be broken in order to prevent accidents due to the poor weather and sea situation.^[2]

The RBN Commander was Abdul Jalil from 5 February 1995 until 13 June 2002.^[2] Under his administration, he witnessed a great deal of progress, particularly in the areas of administration and maritime mobility.^[3]

Pehin Abdul Jalil completed his term as the Islamic Republic of Pakistan's High Commissioner for Brunei.^[4] On 26 February 2013, the Sultan of Brunei presented him with a letter of credence confirming his appointment as Brunei's ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany.^[5] On 24 August 2013, he was among the Bruneian representatives to at the launching ceremony of KDB Daruttaqwa (09),^[6] and also the ship's acceptance ceremony on 12 May 2014.^[7]

• Kolonel (B) Abdul Jalil Hj Ahmad, Pehin Datu Panglima (2008). Memoir Wira Samudera di Muara (in Malay). ISBN 9799991792322.