For pity's sake, the government should at least give away free gas masks to the areas that are affected by the haze instead of making us buy them. Rich folk in the cities might be able to afford them and stay in air-conditioned rooms, but what of the poor villagers who can't afford them or who don't have access to proper masks?

Cheap, paper surgical masks are not effective; the haze is made of small particles that penetrate these masks. It's like wearing a chemical suit and walking into a radiation zone, it is of no protection. Proper autoclaved masks are much better but they are more expensive.

What happened to all the resources the whole population of Malaysia has entrusted the politicians with? What are they being used for?

It's a pity that our leaders nowadays do not find the need to convince us that something is being done to improve a hazardous situation. It's a crying shame that we are accepting this lying down and letting the politicians get away with what is clearly incompetence.

We elected them to represent us, to take care of us and to fight for our welfare on the national and international stage. This haze situation, on an overall scale, might be a small problem but it's been recurring for the past decade. Why hasn't it been resolved?

My tears are not due to the haze, but from sadness at the prospect that when we are hit with an even worse haze situation, our best and finest will be again asking us to just pray.