Insurgency Denying Children Immunisation in North-east, Former Lawmaker Cries Out

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

A former member of the House of Representatives and medical practitioner, Dr. Wale Okediran, has said insurgency in the North-east had deprived children and infants in the region of essential immunisation for more than five years.

He made the disclosure while speaking on Guest Platform, a monthly programme of the state-owned Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State (BCOS).

Okediran said the development posed serious risks to the health of affected children and infants, warning that failure to address the situation could lead to higher child mortality rates and possible outbreaks of epidemics.

He also lamented that the Boko Haram insurgency had restricted the movement of people in some northern states, adding that the crisis disrupted commercial activities and reduced their internally generated revenue (IGR).

He said, “The North of Nigeria has been a very difficult story. When we were young, many of us loved going to the North. We have our railway system, which at that time unified Nigeria. Many of our parents were railway workers.

“People like the late Chief Bola Ige and his generation were all born in the North. If I may recall, Chief Ige told us that his first language was Hausa. In fact, he came to the South-west of Nigeria when he was about 12 years old. He couldn’t speak a word of Yoruba because his parents were railway workers in the North.

“In those days, the railway system and many other things were good; you had many Yoruba extraction growing up in the North. They were even born there, and the movement was peaceful.

“Unfortunately, in the last decade or so, because of the onslaught of insurgency, the North has become a difficult place to visit.

“When I was working on my book, ‘Madagali,’ I had the opportunity of working in Yola, Adamawa State. I used that opportunity to tour areas in the North, down to Borno State. I had firsthand information about the devastation caused by the Boko Haram insurgency.

“I was totally depressed about what was happening, coupled with these out-of-school children. The insurgency has affected numerous indicators, including health.

“What I am bothered by as a health practitioner is that because of insurgency, we have not been able to immunise many children in the North for years.

“When you want to look at the indices of Nigeria when it comes to vaccination, the North’s record will always go down.

“Also, the rate of out-of-school children is on the increase, while farming has also been affected. Many areas of human endeavour have been affected by the insurgency.

“I am hopeful that with this collaboration between Nigeria and some other foreign countries to stem insurgency, the North will be able to regain its glory of previous years.”