Readers doubtless know Indonesia is literally on fire end to end.

Almost nowhere is spared. Forests are being wiped out and so is wildlife.

No one could exaggerate the scale or seriousness of the situation.

Apocalyptic, cataclysmic, are words that begin to give one a feel for the gravity facing both people and wildlife, for whom it is impossible to escape the raging fires.

If you are in any doubt just Google ‘Indonesians forest fires’ and be prepared to be shocked to your core by what you see.

What you may not know or at least understand is, the underlying cause of the fires - namely, palm oil plantations clearing land.

You might also be unaware that now, possibly at the peak of this destruction, the president of Indonesia has flown off to America. What does this tell you about his leadership? A case of the captain deserting his sinking ship?

Ministers left in charge of this debacle, two months on, still procrastinate over whether or not to label the fires a national disaster. If they are not, what is?

There are many in Indonesia, though not in government, who believe some fires are being started deliberately to clear primary forests so that land can then be used for new palm oil plantations.

Trying to pin the blame on anyone is pointless anyway: When the fires are out, the forests are gone and with them maybe 20,000 barbecued orangutans, no one will ever be held accountable.

So why do I write this? I’ve been visiting Indonesia for over 20 years. I am fond of its people (not government) and passionate about the wildlife I see disappearing at a truly alarming rate.

It breaks my heart to see what is happening now and the government of Indonesia’s lethargic response to the environmental and human calamity facing them.

How does this effect Malaysia? Well, apart from the choking haze some of you and your families are breathing, Malaysian-owned palm oil companies have for years been rampantly raiding Indonesia’s forests both for wood and land; they still are.

What needs to happen? The president of Indonesia needs to get a grip of this disaster now, show strong leadership and deploy vastly more human resources in the form of military personnel to help extinguish the fires. There is nothing else for the military to do is there?

The only threat to Indonesia are the forest fires raging before its calamitous and apparently impotent government only when the fires are out will we know the environmental and human cost inflicted on Indonesia.

The fires are man-made and were always avoidable. No lessons have been learnt from previous years, consequently the same mistakes happen over and over again.

If you want to blame someone, it has to be the president. The buck stops must to stop with him.

The president’s first priority should always be to protect his people and the environment they live in. Right now both are suffering terribly - and to think it has all been avoidable.

SEAN WHYTE is CEO, Nature Alert.