Bill Gates, US-based Christians, Doctors Mourn Slain Health Workers!

SHOCK and disbelief succinctly captures the mood in the health sector over the Friday killing of some female health workers.

As Minister of State for Health, Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, whose office supervises the fight against polio, described the slain vaccinators as heroes, US billionaire and Polio campaign donor in Nigeria, Mr. Bill Gates, Saturday expressed deep concern, describing the apparent terrorist attack as a tragedy, and “unacceptable.”

Pate, however, expressed the optimism that the incident would not affect the nation’s quest to eradicate polio in Nigeria.

The health workers were conducting polio vaccination in Kano when they were killed by gunmen.

Pate said: “On February 8, 2013, we received the shocking news of the fatal shooting of nine health workers during separate attacks in Nassarawa and Taurani LGAs of Kano State.

“Although this is part of a long standing cycle of violence that has engulfed states such as Borno, Yobe, Kaduna and Kano states in recent months, we are invariably left dumb-founded by this dastardly act of cowardice that has not spared the very people who have paid the ultimate price because of their commitment to humanity and the love of their profession.

“Our hearts go out to the families, friends and colleagues of these brave women killed today; we also commiserate with the families of those non-health workers, who also lost their lives.  Our nation mourns the demise of these nine women, who toiled night and day to ensure that our children receive vaccines that would protect them from diseases such as polio, measles, tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis.”

He described the dead vaccinators as heroes who died during service to the nation.

Similarly, a statement issued Friday night on behalf of Mr. Gates, the US-based Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said of the Kano killing: “Our sympathy goes out to the victims and their families who were caught up in this morning’s terrible attack in Nigeria’s Kano State. “

According to the Foundation, “any attack on health workers anywhere is unacceptable. This tragic incident is an attack on the delivery of basic health services to the most vulnerable families.”

But the Gates Foundation said it would not be deterred in its campaign to help families in Northern Nigeria who need vaccination.

“We will continue to support the people of Nigeria, their traditional and religious leaders, and the Government, in their tireless efforts to create an environment where mothers and children can be safely reached with essential interventions by frontline health workers, such as vaccines to prevent polio, measles, tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough and hepatitis.”

Also, the Christian Association of Nigerian-Americans (CANAN) called on traditional rulers and religious leaders to speak out more stridently against the recurrent terrorist killings in northern Nigeria.

In a statement released by CANAN Secretariat over the weekend, the association said the fact that suspected Boko Haram terrorists are attacking health workers is only an outcome of the impunity they have enjoyed in their previous and consistent killings of Christians.

On its part, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) described the incident as reminiscence of Nigeria’s insecurity.

President of the NMA, Dr. Osahon Enabulele, said his members “are in shock” over the development.

He said: “The NMA totally deprecates this unfortunate villainous act of murder, especially coming at a time when Nigeria is struggling very hard to drop her gold medal in polio, being one of three remaining countries where polio is endemic. In 2012, Nigeria was reported to have 121 out of 222 polio cases in the world, way ahead of countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan.

“It was therefore a great shock that the female health workers were murdered in the course of vaccinating Nigerian children against polio.

“The murder of the female health workers is a further reminder of Nigeria’s abysmal state of insecurity, social dislocation and depravity. It also further exposes the high level of insecurity of healthcare workers in Nigeria, as well as the persisting misconceptions about polio vaccination.”

Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Ado JG Muhammad, said the country would not be deterred by the death of the health workers, stressing that nothing would stop the nation in ensuring the interruption of wild polio virus.

He paid tribute to health workers across the country for their dedication to the fight against polio.

“Hold fast to dreams,
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird, That cannot fly.” ― Langston Hughes