120 people arrested for refusing polio vaccine in Niger

by ‘Jola Sotubo

In a move to firmly eradicate polio from the state, the Niger State Government has arrested 120 people for refusing vaccination to prevent the scourge.

This comes barely a week after the state government issued a statement in which it threatened  to jail anyone who prevented his or her child from receiving the polio vaccine.

The Director of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Shehu Yabagi, who reportedly disclosed this to newsmen in Minna yesterday, said among the arrested persons were those who had consistently opposed the polio vaccine immunization exercise in the state.

He pointed out that the persons were arrested at various locations in the state by the police as the agency sought to enforce the law that forbids rejection of the polio vaccine.

Yabagi said some of the suspects had already been arraigned before various courts in the state, while some of them had been convicted.

“Some have even paid fine for their action,” he said.

He said the agency would continue to work hard to ensure that polio was eradicated in the state and by extension, the whole country through advocacy and enforcement of the various laws enacted by the state government.

Yabagi said the state government had also sent another bill to the state assembly to make it a criminal offence for any cleric that preached against the acceptance of the polio vaccines in the state.

Any preacher who violates the law, Yabagi said, would be jailed or pay huge fine.

The director said traditional rulers and religious leaders had been mobilized to educate their subjects and members on the advantages of the vaccine.

He also disclosed that the agency had embarked on the cross-border immunization exercise in a bid to halt any further transmission of the disease.

He also commended various organizations for their cooperation and assistance to the agency that led to the success recorded in the state.

 

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail