By Joyce Remi- Babayeju
Two years after the World Health Organization certified Nigeria with a polio free status the country is now suffering a setback in polio victory as the leg twisting virus , cVDP2 strain outbreak sweep across fourteen states of the country.
Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, Dr. Faisal Shuaib made this known today in Abuja at the agency’s 2nd Quarter meeting of the Northern Traditional Leaders Committee on Primary Health Care Delivery , NTLC.
Shuaib who was represented by Dr. Usman Adamu of the agency said, ” As at today we have cVDP2 outbreaks in Aba, Bayelsa, Borno, Delta, FCT, Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi, Lagos, Niger, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara States.”
Shuaib said, ” Nigeria is already certified WPV free by ARCC however there are cases of cVDP2 in some states.
He therefore warned, ” hence the need for us to jealously guard our WPV free status and stop up the cVDP2 transmission in our communities.”
The NPHCDA boss further decried cases of missed children in communities where OBTs have been conducted using the Novelle Oral Polio vaccine, adding that the sub- optimal performance would not help to bring the outbreak under control.
He further warned that funding for polio by donors have reduced drastically and therefore called on traditional rulers to pull political strings to fund the Polio Outbreak Response campaigns.
He appealed for continuous support by traditional leaders immobilizing the people for the OBR campaigns and other subsequent rounds of the Polio vaccination.
Shuaib also commended the leaders for their efforts in curbing the spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria, especially at the Community level.
Chairman of the Northern Traditional Leaders Committee on Primary Health Care, Alhaji Samaila Mohammadu Mera , Emir of Argungu who represented the Sultan of Sokoto, gave the assurance that members of the NTLC would continue to put in their best in support of all initiatives and programmes of the Federal Government.
He lamented that Nigeria is yet to come out of the woods because the cVDP2 continues to spread in states that have been polio free seven years ago.
He therefore promised that all traditional leaders under the NTLC umbrella would support all health and related programmes but urged for an enabling feedback channel to the agency and partners on true situation at the grassroots.
