KUALA LUMPUR: The forest fires in Riau would not have broken out if preventive measures were put in place earlier, said Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
Widodo, better known as Jokowi, in his Facebook post yesterday (Tuesday) said the first few hotspots spotted in the area should have been extinguished before the fires spread to form hundreds of hotspots.
“Government agencies at various levels and security agencies are capable of taking preventive measures to control the fires from spreading.
“(But) what is the problem? The problem lies with ineffective cooperation and initiatives that are not optimal.
“I have on numerous occasions reminded that the prevention of land and forest fires is vital,” he wrote.
Jokowi visited the firefighting operation in Desa Merbau, Bunut district, in Riau last weekend.
Meanwhile, in another Facebook post, Jokowi said 52 helicopters were mobilised to Riau for water-bombing efforts.
He said an additional 5,600 military personnel were also deployed to the area, to help the 9,000 people currently trying to douse the flames.
“We are making every effort to stop forest and land fires in Riau and surrounding areas.
“However, the right way is prevention, by eliminating one hotspot before it grew to the hundreds,” he said.
Jokowi also reminded all parties not to conduct open burning on peatlands or forests.
“Stern action will be taken against any perpetrator; be it individual or corporation,” he said.
The periodic haze caused by forest fires have prompted the closure of schools and disrupted travel in Malaysia.
It was reported that since January, more than 42,000ha of land (forests and plantations) have burnt in several provinces in Indonesia such as Riau, Jambi, and Kalimantan.
On Sept 8, Indonesian Environmental Affairs and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar in a statement claimed that Malaysia’s haze was not from the republic, but was caused by fires in Sarawak.
Malaysia’s Energy, Science, Technology, Environment, and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin then rebutted the claims, saying that it was illogical for Indonesia to claim the haze originated from Sarawak.
Yeo pointed out that data from the Asean Specialised Metrological Centre (ASMC), clearly showed hundreds of hotspots in the republic, compared to seven hotspots in Malaysia.