Facebook Propaganda Major Hurdle in Eradicating Polio – Govt. of Pakistan

In an official statement from PM Imran Khan’s focal person Babar Bin Atta, one of the major hurdles in eradicating polio from the country is the continuous negative propaganda against the vaccination on social media. The propaganda has also become a threat to the safety of health workers who are actively participating in the door to door campaign, said the statement.

“The parental refusals due to the propaganda on Facebook […] are emerging as a major obstacle in achieving complete eradication of the virus,” the letter said. It further added, “Pakistan has made great strides in eradicating polio; however, concerns of vaccine safety and efficacy have generated a high number of vaccine refusals from parents and/or children reported as missing during immunization campaigns.”

The Government of Pakistan, through this statement, has made an official request to Facebook to take down malicious content against the polio campaign and control the flow of false information on the matter.

The statement letter also said that Pakistan Polio Eradication Program has compiled a list of Facebook pages, actively involved in the propaganda, and shared the sample with Facebook authorities to take notice.