Naaz said no polio case was reported in Karachi in 2012 and city was considered polio-free.
The deputy project manager of the Expanded Program on Immunisation (EPI), Sindh, Dr Duray Naz said on Friday that poor security in Karachi is one of major causes of the failure of the polio campaign.
Naaz said no polio case was reported in Karachi in 2012 and city was considered polio-free. However, seven polio cases were reported in Karachi in 2013, out of which four were reported in Gadap Town. Due to the outbreak of polio, Gadap Town has been dubbed the ‘Waziristan of Karachi’. Naaz also claimed that two of the children affected by polio died last year in Karachi.
However, another EPI source said that a total of four polio cases were detected in 2012 but the number more than doubled in 2013. He added that politically motivated appointments and transfers have affected EPI’s performance in Sindh. He said that EPI has become virtually ineffective.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 11th, 2014.
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