Most taliban support polio drive: K-P governor
Says eradicating disease is a moral, social responsibility.
PESHAWAR:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Governor Barrister Masood Kausar said on Wednesday that most Taliban support the polio drive.
While inaugurating a polio campaign at the University of Peshawar (UoP), Kausar said that it was only a “handful” of Taliban who were against the vaccinations.
He said that polio cases were significantly higher in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) where the literacy rate is low. “The government is working to promote education in those regions,” he added.
He further said that many areas that were previously inaccessible had been made accessible for the polio campaign.
On September 5, immunisation teams went into the previously inaccessible Tirah Valley in Khyber Agency. They managed to vaccinate around 32,641children against polio and other fatal diseases such as measles.
Pakistan is one of the remaining three countries in the world that which is affected by polio. In 2011, 45 polio cases were reported in Fata, while this year 16 cases have been reported so far.
The barrister said that polio will soon be eradicated not only from Fata, but from both the tribal belt and K-P if people cooperate with government teams.
Kausar maintained that it was not only a moral and social responsibility to eradicate the disease but also the preaching of Islam to save the lives of fellow beings.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 25th, 2012.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Governor Barrister Masood Kausar said on Wednesday that most Taliban support the polio drive.
While inaugurating a polio campaign at the University of Peshawar (UoP), Kausar said that it was only a “handful” of Taliban who were against the vaccinations.
He said that polio cases were significantly higher in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) where the literacy rate is low. “The government is working to promote education in those regions,” he added.
He further said that many areas that were previously inaccessible had been made accessible for the polio campaign.
On September 5, immunisation teams went into the previously inaccessible Tirah Valley in Khyber Agency. They managed to vaccinate around 32,641children against polio and other fatal diseases such as measles.
Pakistan is one of the remaining three countries in the world that which is affected by polio. In 2011, 45 polio cases were reported in Fata, while this year 16 cases have been reported so far.
The barrister said that polio will soon be eradicated not only from Fata, but from both the tribal belt and K-P if people cooperate with government teams.
Kausar maintained that it was not only a moral and social responsibility to eradicate the disease but also the preaching of Islam to save the lives of fellow beings.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 25th, 2012.