Rasheeda Yahaya
By Abubakar Rabilu, Gombe
The Chairman of Balanga Local Government Area in Gombe State, Ibrahim Salisu Jatau, has commended the Rotary Club for its efforts in supporting polio eradication campaigns and urged parents to ensure their children are immunised against the disease.
Jatau made the appeal during the commemoration of the 2025 World Polio Day, organised by the Rotary Club across Gombe State.
He said the local government has recorded encouraging participation in the ongoing vaccination exercise but emphasised the need for more community involvement to achieve total coverage.
“There is no harm in taking the vaccine, but we must continue to sensitise the people so that all parents will bring out their children. Our goal is to build a healthy generation,” Jatau stated.
The chairman explained that his administration has been working closely with traditional rulers to help spread awareness about the importance of the polio vaccine, especially at the grassroots level.
Also speaking, a representative of the International Vaccine Access Centre (IVAC), Adamu Babayo, said Balanga Local Government Area, with a population of about 400,000, is targeting 8,346 children across its 10 wards for vaccination in the current phase.
He assured that enough vaccine doses have been supplied and appealed to parents to ensure their wards receive the vaccine to protect them from polio.
In his remarks, the Head of the SWA Primary Health Care Centre, Mr. Danjuma K. Mauni, described the polio vaccine as essential to child health and praised the Rotary Club for its collaboration with the government in marking the World Polio Day.
The event concluded with Chairman Jatau symbolically administering the vaccine to some children, marking Balanga’s participation in the 2025 World Polio Day celebration held on October 24.
