By Dipo Awojobi – President Buhari has been commended by Rotary International for his efforts to eradicate polio in the country since he got to office in 2015.
In a statement issued Wednesday and made available to News Investigators, Rotary said Buhari demonstrated his personal commitment to ending polio by publicly immunizing his young granddaughter.
“In September, he launched polio immunization campaigns in his hometown of Daura, Katsina, by vaccinating local children. Mostly recently, he convened a Presidential Task Force on Polio Eradication, through which 36 Nigerian State Governors reaffirmed their commitment to keeping Nigeria polio-free.
“President Buhari and the Nigerian government have shown they are equal to this challenge, maintaining strong commitment and public support for polio immunization in the face of zero cases,” the statement read.
According to them, the World Health Organization (WHO) removed Nigeria from its list of polio-endemic countries after the African nation went one year without reporting a case of the disease.
“The last reported case of polio in Nigeria was July 24, 2014, in south Kano State. Nigeria was the last country on the African continent to report active transmission of the wild poliovirus.
“Rotary established the Polio Eradication Champion Award in 1995 to recognize leaders and others who have made significant contributions to the global eradication of polio.
“Past recipients include Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan; Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany; David Cameron, Prime Minister of Britain; Enda Kenny, Prime Minister of Ireland; and Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General,” they stated.
