KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah is considering strict measures against parents who refuse to vaccinate their children against poliovirus.
Presiding over a meeting on polio eradication at the CM House, the Sindh chief minister said that he was considering blocking SIM cards, suspending national identity cards (CNICs) and passports of those who refuse to vaccinate their children, as per a statement from the Chief Minister's House issued on Friday.
"I have no other options but to penalise those who shirk their national duty of eradicating polio, a responsibility that starts at home and affects the entire province and country," he said.
He added: "Such refusal harms not only their children but also spreads the virus to other children."
The Sindh CM directed Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah to submit to him a plan to block SIMs, CNICs, and passports of such individuals.
The Sindh chief minister also established a Polio Vaccine Refusal Cell at the CM House.
This cell will be provided with union council-wise details of parents refusing to vaccinate their children so they can be addressed through social, political, and administrative means.
Expressing dismay over the continued reporting of new polio cases in the province, he directed the health department and district administrations to increase efforts to eradicate polio.
“Any official not showing performance will no longer be part of his team. I have already removed some officers from the health department and administration,” he told the meeting.
The Sindh CM observed that most of the new polio cases have been reported in the border areas of the districts.
He directed that the next polio vaccination must also cover all nomadic families, including those in Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas Divisions.
Sindh reported two more polio cases last month, raising the province's tally to nine.
Of the total 29 polio cases reported nationwide, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa tops the list with 18 cases, Sindh reported nine, while Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir have reported one each.