Aseefa Bhutto urges parents to back anti-polio efforts

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Aseefa Bhutto Zardari on Sunday requested all parents to support the government in its effort towards polio eradication.

In a message on the occasion of World Polio Day 2022, she said the recent polio cases in Pakistan were a threat to Pakistan’s future generations and “our children can be saved from childhood diseases like polio through vaccine. We must all come together and work towards polio eradication. We owe to our children. We must collectively work towards making Pakistan Polio Free.”

She added: “With 20 new cases reported in Pakistan in just 2022, the government is being extra vigilant, and it is extremely crucial for us to reach every child under the age of 5 in order to curb the spread of Polio Virus in the country.”

Aseefa said the back-to-back monthly polio campaigns were to ensure that the Pakistani children remain polio free.

“Thanks to these campaigns, Sindh has not reported a single case of polio since July 2020 and environment samples on major location are also negative which is good for the programme and the future of our children,” she said.

Aseefa said if Pakistan continues with the same momentum, “we will further see significant results, but we must not get complacent and continue the hard work and have regular vaccination campaigns to ensure our children are protected. We understand that communities in the super high-risk UCs for polio need other services and we are addressing this through new initiatives like creating health facilities.”

The PPP leader said Pakistan must focus on childhood immunisation to prevent childhood diseases; the benefits of vaccination are clear as frequent campaigns can significantly reduced the burden of polio across the country like it has in the past.

“Children can be saved from childhood diseases like polio through vaccination and we seek the media’s help to raise awareness regarding this. Pakistan is one of the two polio-endemic countries in the world along with Afghanistan and has so far reported a total of 10 polio cases in 2022,” she said.

The polio vaccine, she said, was the safest and most effective way to save children from polio. “Remember polio has no cure but can be easily prevented through vaccination and we are sending workers to your doorsteps so please cooperate with them and help save the future of Pakistan and eradicate polio,” she said.