International
condemnation has trailed Friday’s killing of nine vaccination workers
in Kano state as US billionaire and polio campaign donor in Nigeria, Mr
Bill Gates has expressed concern, calling the apparent terrorist attack a
tragedy, and “unacceptable.”
In
a statement issued on 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 needed 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.”
The
statement added that, “by working together, we will overcome this
tragedy and ensure that all people, wherever they may live, have access
to health services.”
Information
Nigeria recalls that Mr Gates had recently expressed worry about Boko
Haram and terrorist activities in northern Nigeria where his foundation
has played a frontline role in vaccination efforts. The Gates Foundation
spends about $1bn yearly on polio vaccination with a large chunk of
that amount spent on Nigeria.
Gates
had declared that for him, health workers killed by terrorists, are his
personal heroes and one way to honor them is to get
their jobs completely done.
TalkOfNaija
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