Yesterday the haze was already quite bad seen from my kids' school. Still, we were happy to let them carry on with activities, most indoor anyway such as with their Tae Kwon Do training.
Today matters are far worse. I am sitting in a cafe in Taman Tun with both sides open to the street. Usually this results in a cool and pleasant breeze. Today, the breeze carries an unattractive Haze odour.
Today my mother started compalining about eye irritation from being out to a majlis. Today my sister has her asthmatic kids wearing masks indoors. Today I can still catch a scent of the Haze in the corridors of a private hospital my wife is resting in.
But today is neither a school day nor a working day. The government plans to seed the clouds so that rain may wash this haze away. Good, but we still need to stay indoors to avoid the acidic rain that will come, which is possible as it is not a school or working day.
Will it be worse tomorrow? Does anyone know enough to guide the powers that be on this? No matter, I would suggest that the Ministry of Education can do one thing to at least reassure the people that all is being considered to protect the young. Declare tomorrow, Monday, 24 June 2013, an emergency day off for all schools.
There are no exams at the moment, and calling a day off for the kids will keep them indoors, reduce smog contributing traffic from the roads in the mornings especially, and perhaps get some parents staying home and not driving fossil fuel engines too for a day.
But it is only worthwhile doing this if the government is planning something aggressive about the haze. This is war against man's destructive tendencies, and our children are the first victims that may fall.
