Ghana's paralympian to embark on polio awareness tour

Ghanaian paralympian Alem Mumuni will embark on a three-day bike ride from Accra to Kumasi to educate the populace about poliomyelitis.

The event, dubbed "Ride out Polio", is being sponsored by Rotary International Club to arouse the public's interest in the two-day mass polio immunization exercise in Ghana from Oct. 22-24.

Mumuni, who is a two-time African champion in the Olympics cycling competition, said the ride covering 560 km would not be an easy adventure but he would use his disability as a showcase for human ability to overcome bodily limitations.

Mumuni, polio ambassador for Rotary Club International, believes this will inspire hope in other persons with disabilities as well as able-bodied persons and in parents whose children have one form of disability or another, to give them all the necessary support.

"As a polio survivor who could have lost his life or the opportunities that I have now, it is a great responsibility for me to do everything possible to help save other vulnerable children from the dangers of this disease," he said.

He encouraged parents to make their children available for immunization against polio on Oct. 24 and subsequent years.

Records show Ghana has been polio-free since 2008 but health authorities say there is a need to work assiduously towards maintaining the gains made.

Over 11,000 teams made up of volunteers and vaccinators are expected to be deployed in a house-to-house exercise and at lorry parks, schools and markets to administer the oral polio vaccine to all eligible children. Endi