Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday terming ‘Polio-free Pakistan’ a national goal urged the citizens to cooperate with polio teams for the complete eradication of the crippling disease from the country.
“This is a testing time with the resurgence of recent polio cases and the related security incidents, but we can and will overcome it,” he said at the launch of the nationwide anti-polio drive.
The drive kicked off as the prime minister administered drops of polio vaccine to the children under five years of age, here at the Prime Minister’s House. The current anti-polio campaign for Karachi and six districts of southern Khyber-Pakhtunkwa started on August 15, while the National Polio Vaccination Drive will commence on August 22.
The prime minister vowed to get the country free from polio, which he said was affecting the children in some areas.
He regretted that polio was one of the few countries in the world where polio was still recognized as an endemic viral infection.
He urged the parents not to miss getting their children administered the polio drops and support the government’s goal to make Pakistan polio-free.
The prime minister expressed Pakistan’s commitment to ending polio and emphasised the role of the government leaders, health workers, and parents to ensure that the disease never paralyzed a child jointly.
He said by keeping up the momentum and staying vigilant, Pakistan would be able to win the challenge of polio eradication.