The Chairman of Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, Princess Benedicta Attoh, has appealed to traditional rulers and community leaders, community-based organisations, religious bodies, individuals, and families in the locality to join in mobilising mothers and carers to make their children available to health workers that have been deployed across various communities for vaccination against polio disease.
Princess Attoh, who made the appeal while flagging off the polio immunisation exercise in the council area, reiterated that the polio vaccine is not the COVID-19 vaccine and appealed to the people not to hide their children as some did during the COVID-19 vaccination.
The council boss, who was at the Okpekpe Primary Health Centre during the official flag-off exercise on Saturday, thanked Governor Godwin Obaseki for his commitment to ensuring that Edo children remained safe and healthy.
She described Polio as a preventable disease through vaccination, saying immunisation remained the best protection against polio and recommended it for all infants and children to protect them from the harmful effects of polio.
Attoh called on stakeholders to support the local government health workers by ensuring compliance and helping to create mass awareness of the Polio immunisation campaign that would continue until Tuesday next week, while Wednesday and Thursday will be used for mopping up.
She advised any community that the health workers had not visited between Saturday and Monday to raise alarm as Polio vaccination remained the people’s right and was free.
Speaking also at the flag-off exercise, the State Facilitator, Catherine Darpokpo, said the state government was committed to ensuring that Edo State is polio-free.
Her view was also echoed by other speakers on the occasion.
On his part, HRH, Apa Peter Abalumhe Osigbemeh, Onwueweko Clan Head of Okpekpe Kingdom, thanked the state government and the local government chairman for considering Okpekpe for the flag-off of the exercise, assuring that health workers would be given the needed cooperation to ensure the success of the programme.
In his welcome address, the coordinator of Primary Health Care in the council, Dr Damisa, reiterated that the intention of the immunisation was to promote the growth of children and urged mothers in Etsako East to make their children available as health workers would be visiting their homes to vaccinate their children for free.
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