A close scrutiny of the NOAA-12 Satellite pictures for Aug 23 posted by the Singapore Meteorological Services located at the National Environment Agency's website

shows at least two major hotspots in Sarawak. They are clearly identifiable and are located in the Bintulu/Miri region, a region hosting thousands upon thousands of hectares of oil palm estates run by large plantation companies.

Four questions immediately spring to mind.

Firstly, why are there major hotspots in this area of Sarawak when open burning has been banned by the government?

Secondly, isn't the government concerned about extinguishing these fires immediately?

Thirdly, are these hotspots in any way linked to large oil palm companies, many of which have close links to Barisan Nasional politicians?

Finally, how about some honest answers?