TUESDAY’s attack on a polio team in Pishin, Balochistan, where a police official escorting the immunisation team was shot dead, underscores the deep-rooted challenges that Pakistan continues to face in its attempts to eradicate the crippling poliovirus. Tragically, the attack follows a spate of killings of polio workers and those guarding them in the country this year. The format has been the same, with unknown assailants targeting teams during a polio vaccination drive, and killing workers as well as the security officials guarding them. The fact that these attacks follow a predictable pattern raises serious questions. Is the security adequate? Are the officials equipped with the arms and training needed to protect themselves and the vaccination team? How are gunmen able to locate and target these teams, and manage to flee so easily each time?

After reporting just one case of polio in 2021, this year the number of cases is around 20 — all of them reported in the northwest of the country. This raises serious questions about the drive, which while seriously hindered by threats from assailants, is also hampered by a mindset where families resist vaccination due to harmful propaganda and misinformation. The government must do everything in its power to find out who the perpetrators are and bring them to justice. It is unfortunate that despite the $5bn spent on the eradication programme since 1994, Pakistan is still reporting over a dozen cases. Though progress has been made in some years, officials cannot afford to be complacent, especially as cases are rising. Earlier this year, when philanthropist Bill Gates met Imran Khan, he said that continued and sustained polio vaccination efforts in Pakistan and Afghanistan in 2022 would be critical to eradicating the virus from the world. It is embarrassing and deeply unfortunate that Pakistan has gone many steps backwards after moving forward and making gains. Those responsible for the lapses must be called to task, and the security provided to these teams reviewed.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2022