Rural areas reeling in fight against polio

Many mosques across the province refuse to support Sehat Muhafiz polio teams


Owais Qarni March 27, 2018
PHOTO: FILE

MULTAN: In the aftermath of the recent anti-polio drive carried out in the province on March 12, there still remain several obstacles in eradicating the disease.

Despite the government’s concentrated efforts targeting polio, it remains a formidable enemy. Across the province, religious scholars and leaders alike preach against the infamous polio vaccine. Going against the tide, some of the mosques in Multan have shown their support for polio eradication efforts, labelling it as the only course for the future. However, there remain a few who have flat out refused to support the Sehat Muhafiz polio teams.

In a survey conducted by The Express Tribune, it was found that there were around 11 mosques in Muzaffargarh, Multan and other adjoining areas where prayer leaders had refused to make any announcements in support of the anti-polio campaign. When questioned, they unanimously claimed that the oral polio vaccine (OPV) caused infertility.

Qari Nadeem of Janazgaah Mosque stated that government officials regularly visited mosques regarding announcements about the anti-polio campaigns. This was reiterated by another prayer leader at Hajji Bait Mosque.

But when questioned on his views regarding eradication efforts, Nadeem was of the opinion that it caused infertility in children and was part of a larger government conspiracy for population control.

On the flip side, Qari Sajjad of Eidgah Mosque said that no government official or team had ever visited for the anti-polio campaign. “The government does not allow funeral announcements, so how could they allow announcements regarding polio vaccines?” he wondered.

Several prayer leaders of various mosques stated the same. In their knowledge, the government had not launched any such activity in their area.

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This is an issue that we face in rural areas across the province, lamented District Government Spokesperson Waseem Yousuf, specifically in the sub-districts of Multan.

Officials from the Auqaf department regularly visit these areas, he said. Before every anti-polio campaign, there is a meeting which is attended by the heads of important institutions.  It is the duty of the Auqaf department’s zonal head to deliver and convey the minutes of each meeting to the leaders and the scholars at the mosques, he informed.

Furthermore, scholars, who are on anti-polio committees, direct mosques to deliver announcements after every prayer and special sermons after Friday prayers, he said.

Despite this, we still face resistance in rural areas, a phenomenon that is not witnessed in cities and urban areas, said Yousuf. In cities, we advertise vaccination efforts through newspapers and local cable TV channels, he added.

Health CEO Dr Shahid Bukhari, who is involved in the campaigns, dreams of a polio-free Pakistan.

“We are slowly inching towards our goal,” he said. “All of our efforts remain concentrated on convincing people across rural areas to vaccinate their children.”

He added, “We humbly request religious scholars and readers to cooperate with us and join hands in eradicating this disease, securing our future as polio-free.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 27th, 2018.

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