Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Haji Mohammad Shanonnizam bin Sulaiman, simply known as Shanon, is a Bruneian

military officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

whom is the incumbent fourteenth

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the Royal Brunei Land Forces (RBLF) since 2023.

Military career

On 12 July 1996, Shanonnizam

enlisted Enlisted may refer to: * Enlisted rank An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or ...

in the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF). After completing his

officer cadet Officer Cadet is a rank held by military cadets during their training to become commissioned officers. In the United Kingdom, the rank is also used by members of University Royal Naval Units, University Officer Training Corps and University Air ...

training at the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

in April 1998, he started his career as an infantry

platoon commander {{unreferenced, date=February 2013 A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth militaries and the US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This person is usually a junior officer – a second or firs ...

in 'A' Company, 3rd Battalion RBLF, service number 512. He has served in a number of staff and command positions during the course of his military career, including as a signal officer training in 2000 in

Warminster Warminster () is an ancient market town with a nearby garrison, and civil parish in south west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of about 17,000 in 2011. The 11th-century Minster Church of S ...

in the United Kingdom, a regimental signal officer for the Second Battalion RBLF and as SO3 Communication at the RBLF Headquarters. In 2003, he led the "B" Company of First Battalion RBLF, and later served as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's aide-de-camp. He held the positions of SO2 C41 at the Directorate of Force Capability Development and SO2 Communication at the Directorate of Operations. After a brief service as SO2 Intelligence at the RBLF Headquarters, he completed his leadership and Staff Course at the

Australian Defence College The Australian Defence College (ADC) comprises three joint education and training organisations operated by the Australian Defence Force in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: * the War College, * the Australian Defence Force Training Cent ...

in 2009 and assumed leadership of the Officer Cadet School RBAF. Then, from January 2015 to June 2017, he oversaw the Third Battalion RBLF while holding the positions of SO1 Communications Information Systems at Joint Force Headquarters (JFHQ), SO1 Land Capability Development at the Directorate of Force Capability Development, and SO1 Land Capability Development. The Sultan of Brunei's introduction of the RBAF's 50th Anniversary Book added even more significance to the 52nd RBAF Anniversary Celebration in 2013. The goal of the book, according to

Lt. Col Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

. Shanonnizam, Head of Secretariat Publication, is to provide the RBAF with historical data since their founding so that future generations would be able to understand the RBAF's past. Co-chairs from

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

emphasised the success of the first multilateral exercise during the third ADMM-Plus Expert Working Group (EWG) meeting on HADR in 2014 in Nha Trang, Vietnam. Lt. Col. Shanonnizam, the leader of the delegation and head of the ADMM-Plus HADR and MM Exercise, represented Brunei at the EWG meeting. After serving for three years as the defence adviser to the United Kingdom and the non-resident

defense attache Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, he was appointed

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of the RBLF on 30 July 2020. After enrolling at the Malaysia Armed Forces Defence College in January 2021, he returned to the chief of staff position on 31 January 2022, having earned a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

defense studies Military science is the study of military processes, institutions, and behavior, along with the study of warfare, and the theory and application of organized coercive force. It is mainly focused on theory, method, and practice of producing mil ...

. Following an inaugural ceremony held at Lumut Camp on 13 June later that year, a military exercise involving the RBLF and the

United States Army Pacific The United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) designated by the Secretary of the Army (SECARMY); it may also serve as a Joint Task Force headquarters. It is the army component unit of the United States Indo ...

(USARPAC) officially got underway. In its second iteration, the Exercise Pahlawan Warrior aims to improve partner land force capacity and capabilities, resolve internal security issues, and boost interoperability operations while reiterating shared security commitments to the Indo-Pacific region. The RBLF's chief of staff, Shanonnizam emphasized the value of the alliance between the RBLF and USARPAC for the area. On 27 June 2022, he took over as the first field commander of the RBLF, and on 9 June 2023, he was named

of the RBLF, succeeding Brig. Gen. Saifulrizal. A day before with the consent of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah he was promoted to the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

. The

insignia An insignia () is a sign or mark distinguishing a group, grade, rank, or function. It can be a symbol of personal power or that of an official group or governing body. On its own, an insignia is a sign of a specific or general authority and is ...

was handed during a ceremony at the Officers' Mess at

Bolkiah Garrison Bolkiah Garrison () also sometimes referred to as Bolkiah Camp, is one of the military bases in Mukim Berakas 'A', Bandar Seri Begawan, and serves as the headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF). Intern ...

by Major General Haszaimi. In his inaugural address as the 14th Commander of the RBLF, Brigadier General Haji Mohammad Shanonnizam conveyed three fundamental principles; ''Satria'', ''Setia'', and ''Sedia'' - that would foster and increase the spirit of

chivalry Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It was associated with the medieval Christianity, Christian institution of knighthood; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours we ...

loyalty Loyalty, in general use, is a devotion and faithfulness to a nation, cause, philosophy, country, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another h ...

, and preparedness to every member in order to ensure the RBLF will carry out its roles and duties as an organization that is united, credible, and flexible in maintaining the peace and prosperity of Brunei.

Personal life

Pengiran Hajah Rozedah binti Pengiran Haji Sulaiman is the wife of Shanonnizam, and they have a son together. He likes to

read Read Read may refer to: * Reading, human cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to construct or derive meaning * Read (automobile), an American car manufactured from 1913 to 1915 * Read (biology), an inferred sequence of base pairs of ...

and

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

in his free time.

Honours

Shannonizam has earned the following honours;

National

Order of Setia Negara Brunei Fourth Class (PSB) * Order_of_Seri_Paduka_Mahkota_Brunei_Third_Class_(SMB)

Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei The Most Honourable Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei ( ms, Darjah Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei Yang Amat Mulia), also translated as The Most Honourable Order of the Crown of Brunei, is an order of Brunei. It was established on 1 March 1954 by Su ...

Third Class (SMB) * Sultan's_Golden_Jubilee_Medal_(2017)

Sultan of Brunei Golden Jubilee Medal (5 October 2017) * Brunei_General_Service_Medal

General Service Medal (Armed Forces) * Brunei_Long_Service_Medal

Long Service Medal and Good Conduct (PKLPB) * Royal_Brunei_Armed_Forces_Golden_Jubilee_Medal

Royal Brunei Armed Forces Golden Jubilee Medal (31 May 2011) * Royal Brunei Armed Forces Diamond Jubilee Medal (31 May 2021)

Foreign

* : **

Recipient of the Sandhurst Medal

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sulaiman, Shanonnizam Living people Bruneian Muslims Bruneian military leaders Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Year of birth missing (living people)