By CHIOMA OBINNA & MONSUR OLOWOOPEJO
LAGOS—As from next academic session, all children of school age in Lagos and Ogun states may be required to present their immunisation card before admission.

This is coming on the heels of the flag- off of the first Lagos/Ogun joint border polio eradication campaign, weekend in Lagos.

The move became necessary following efforts of the two states to ensure that they remain polio- free. It will be recalled that the two states had not recorded any case of polio in the last three years.

Addressing the crowd at the border between Akinde- Ologogoro community, Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area, Ogun State and Ojokoro Local Council Development Area, LCDA of Lagos, Governor Babatunde Fashola, who lamented the debilitating effect of the disease, regretted that despite of governments’ efforts to combat the scourge of polio, Nigeria remained one of the countries with the highest prevalence rate in the world.

He urged community leaders to help government efforts in the fight against polio through increased advocacy for routine immunisation.

Also speaking, Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State identified negative perception of the vaccination as a major factor militating against increasing immunisation coverage at the grassroots.

He  explained that some parents were not willing to immunise their children against the disease owing to some misleading cultural and religious beliefs about the exercise.

He said: “It is when we adopt this strategy in our community that we can kick polio out of our country completely.”