Polio vaccines: clerics helped in covering over 4,400 refusal cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Speakers at a seminar said that clerics have helped covering more than 4,400 refusal cases by dispelling the misperception about the polio vaccines in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The seminar titled 'Role of Clerics in eradication of Polio and other fatal diseases' was organised under the auspices of National Research Development Foundation (NRDF) in collaboration with UNICEF and World Health Organisation (WHO) here on Monday, at Peshawar Press Club.
The key speakers included Dr Adil Jan, Deputy Programme Manager, Expanded Polio Immunisation (EPI), Mualana Shaukatullah, religious scholar, Dr Qazi Afsar, and Dr Taimur Shah, Assistant Directors, EPI programme. Dr Adil Jan said that thousands of refusal cases were reported due to propaganda and misperceptions about polio vaccines. However, with the support of the Ulema the misperception regarding the misunderstanding has been now removed.
Last year, he said about 34 cases of polio were detected in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA. Most of the polio cases had been reported from those areas where the Polio teams were lacking access. He added the natural calamity and floods were other causes behind swelling in the polio and other fatal diseases.
Mualana Shaukatullah said that there were misperceptions about the Polio immunisation, but the doubts and suspension had been removed by Ulema. This is the best way to remove all obstacles and barriers whether religious or traditional through engaging religious scholars, he maintained. He claimed that the task should be accomplished merely by qualified and experienced Ulema and religious scholars, who could play their role in removing all misperceptions. Mualana said the people would be convinced through simple and easy ways.