Ulema belonging to various schools of thought should help the government eradicate polio by dispelling misperceptions about its vaccination, Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar said on Saturday. He was talking to a delegation of religious scholars, who called on him at his office. The chief minister appealed to the Ulema to provide all-out support to make the anti-polio campaign successful. The Ulema announced the provision of complete cooperation for the anti-polio campaign and resolved to work effectively on permanent basis to eliminate polio. The Ulema said they would cooperate with the government in the discharge of this national duty and would support measures of the government to make the campaign successful. “The presence of polio disease in Pakistan is a matter of concern. The whole world has become free from polio, but this disease still exists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The role of the Ulema in the anti-polio campaign is vital. Ulema have always played an effective role in the protection of social and moral values, and today the young children need the role of the Ulema to make the anti-polio campaign successful and their role will be helpful in the elimination of this disease. Our mission is to make Punjab free from polio and this is our national issue. We have to work jointly for this objective. We have to protect our nation from this disease. We have resolved to win the war against polio at any cost,” he said. He said a detailed meeting with the Ulema would be held after Eidul Fitr and their issues would be resolved. “We will keep continuous contact with the Ulema and my doors are always open for them,” he said. Speaking on the occasion, Punjab Health Minister Yasmin Rashid said Ulema should play their role in making the anti-polio campaign successful. “The Ulema have always played their duties in an effective manner,” she said. Muttahida Ulema Board Chairman Maulana Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi, Khateeb Badshahi Masjid Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad, Principal Jamia Masjid Minhajul Hassan Dr Muhammad Hussain Akbar, Khateeb Jamia Masjid Umer Bin Abdul Aziz Hafiz Zubair Ahmed Zaheer, Raghib Naeemi of Jamia Naeemia, chairman Punjab Quran Board Maulana Ghulam Muhammad Siyalvi, Khateeb Jamia Masjid Data Darbar Mufti Muhammad Ramazan Siyalvi, Provincial Khateeb Auqaf Maulana Ghulam Mustafa Rizvi, Chairman Itehad Islamic Centre Maulana Ziaul Haq Naqshbandi, Principal Jamia Hijveriya Maulana Badruz Zaman Qadri, Khateeb Jamia Masjid Wazir Khan Maulana Ahmed Raza Siyalvi, Dr Muhammad Saad Siddiqui of Idara Uloom-e-Islamiya Punjab University, Khabteeb Jamia Masjid Neela Gumband Mufti Muhammad Ishaq Saqi Al-Azhari, Provincial Khateeb Auqaf Maulana Ghulam Mustafa Saqib, Maulana Shafiq Ahmed Pasroori, Maulana Muhammad Khalid, Hafiz Kazim Raza Naqvi of Jamiatul Muntazar were present in the meeting. Separately, Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar distributed scholarship cheques among students from minorities. Scholarship cheques worth Rs 0.8 million were given to 18 boy and girl students from minorities.