Common cause: Aseefa offers help in anti-polio fight
A spurt in polio infections this year is helping to forge an unlikely alliance between the daughters of two political foes – incumbent Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the late Benazir Bhutto.
Aseefa Bhutto Zardari came up with the initiative this week as she offered assistance to Maryam Nawaz Sharif in freeing Pakistan of polio.
The initiative showed up on the social media website, Twitter as well, wherein Aseefa urged Maryam to ensure that the federal government diligently works to provide lady health workers with security especially during polio campaigns.
“I urge Maryam to take more of an active role. I am willing to help in any way for a polio-free Pakistan,” she said. “Our war against polio should not become a byline to sit-ins and petty politics. We need to act now or face isolation.”
Aseefa was the first child in Pakistan to be administered polio drops by her mother. She became Pakistan’s goodwill ambassador for polio eradication in 2012.
The team-up could also be seen in the larger context of a thaw in relations between the PPP and the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz. Both the ruling party and main opposition party are at the receiving end of a bitter campaign started by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek whose leaders have accused them of being venal and complicit in preserving a sham democracy.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 12th, 2014.
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Dr johar sahib, thank you very much for responding to my comments on the cause of polio emphasized by Madam Aseefa Bhutto Zardari and supported by Madam Maryam Nawaz Sharif. Kindly send a copy of your reply to both the respected ladies who will appreciate your views on the subject. The honourable ladies might be interested in exploring the idea of developing a new "TWO DROP" polio bottle which you happen to favour but find it not cost effective. Nevertheless,I suggest that the proponents of anti polio fight may be apprised of the outcome of their efforts and it may be left to them to decide whether or not they would want to promote the foregoing concept of a new bottle or not. It is only appropriate that medical opinion should be communicated for suitable action. I shall separately inform the two ladies in due course of time.
Dear Munawar Sahib,
It is encouraging to see people like you giving inputs in Polio Eradication and are serious for the health of their children. If you don`t mind, Can you please visit a health facility and see the process of planning, training, logistics availability and then Supervision and monitoring of the campaign. It seems very simple to give two drops to a child but needs extensive planning and Social Mobilization before any campaign. Moreover, the temperature required to keep the vaccine stable and valid is +2 to +8 C. instilling two drops from a vial also looks very simple and yes it is but making bottles having just two drops is a good idea but will not be cost effective. Polio Eradication is not a rocket science and countries having worst infra-structure, security and poverty have eradicated Polio. We don't have the will to eradicate it. Just three to four doses of Polio Drops will be enough to eradicate. the only thing is; vaccinate every child in these three to four campaigns.
May I hope that polio is a common cause for both Aseefa Bhutto Zardari and Maryam Nawaz Sharif. I need to be recommended by both ladies to as many experts to examine my ideas and report findings to them. Should the two ladies find from experts my ideas helpful at fighting polio battle, the next step would be funding which at least I will not oversee. I shall only participate in growing my ideas and watch them as they turn around and become a threat to polio until it begins to fade away and become extinct. Alternately, however if the two ladies are not interested fighting polio, so be it. I am happy either way but I am not good at searching for writing on the wall.
I am interested in complete eradication of polio provided my idea which is new and exists only in my mind is forwarded to experts for its sustainability. My constraints are far too many but I don't mind if am considered naive and my idea dies in its infancy. My assumption is that if the method of adminisring polio drops was reinvented in a way as I perceive it, I also see change of hearts in parents of the child. However, it is at best only an assumption but than in order to resume one must first assume. My imagination of reinventing the administration of polio drops is based on following assumptions:
Pharma companies have to think of a very attractive mini bottle or a container that will store only "TWO DROPS" of polio vaccine along with a dropper.
The gigantic task which needs to be reseached is inventing a bottle which will sustain temperature up to Max - 40" and Min -4".I am not yet finished with my idea. But for now l leave it to critics of my idea and those who are inclined to think otherwise to please comment and join in efforts to combat polio.
The only qualification these ladies have is that they are born in very rich families with definitely questionable sources of income.
PPP and PML-N already have a undeclared alliance. In the last government PML-N opposition was always quiet and fully supporting the PPP government. Now PPP is doing an even better job at returning the favor.
The statements against each other are made mostly only during election campaigns to gather support of the naive public.
FOR GODS SAKE GIVE US A BREAK, from the brats of the ruling elites
political foes???? Seriously??