CCI to assuage concerns on CPEC

According to a close aide of PM Nawaz, the government would do whatever it took to forge political unity on CPEC

ISLAMABAD: Buckling under relentless pressure from the provinces, especially Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the government has decided to assuage concerns about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor at an upcoming meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI).

The decision was taken by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday when he sat with his top aides at his office to review progress on the multibillion-dollar project. A long official handout issued after the meeting reiterated the oft-repeated assurances, but sources told The Express Tribune that the session had been convened in the backdrop of opposition to the CPEC route from the provinces, especially K-P and Sindh.

“Propagating provincialism for political pursuit is detrimental to the national cause,” a government official said while summing up the government’s approach on the issue. “There is a feeling [in the ruling party leadership] that creating controversies about an issue as crucial as CPEC could entail disastrous implications. It is necessary to respond to the situation – the sooner, the better,” he said.

Sources said the meeting was briefed that repeated statements coming from the K-P government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for prioritising CPEC’s western route have not gone down well with Chinese authorities who have urged Islamabad to sort out the matter.

The meeting decided to take up the issue at the CCI meeting expected to convene sometime in December where participants would include the four provincial chief ministers. “The Chinese want smooth sailing. They have repeatedly cautioned that political divisions were not good for CPEC,” the officials told The Express Tribune.

A close aide of the prime minister claimed the government would do whatever it took to forge political unity on CPEC. “Our opponents need to understand that CPEC is Pakistan’s lifeline. We’ll not let it end up becoming another Kalabagh dam,” he said while referring to the controversial water reservoir which has been shelved due to concerns from K-P and Sindh.

Apart from K-P, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has also expressed reservations over non-inclusion of certain projects in CPEC and demanded that the concerns of the provinces be addressed.

Sources said Premier Sharif has tasked the officials involved in CPEC’s execution, including Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, with addressing the concerns of the two provinces ahead of the CII meeting.

In the statement issued by his office, the prime minister reiterated that “no region or territory must be left behind in reaping the benefits of CPEC”. The meeting took significant overview of the Gwadar projects. It also reviewed at length the benchmarks set for numerous energy, transport infrastructure and industrial projects in terms of deliverables with a particular focus on development of Gwadar port along with socio-economic uplift projects in the city.

“Pakistan’s economy was in a shambles in 2013 when the present government came to power; it was China that supported and helped us in economic revival at such a crucial juncture for which the government and people of Pakistan are indebted to the Chinese leadership and people of China. The visionary Chinese leadership supported us in translating the idea of CPEC into reality,” he added.

“CPEC has changed the negative security narrative into an exceedingly positive economic narrative for Pakistan. The successful implementation of the projects under the umbrella of CPEC is a manifestation of the strong and time-tested friendship between China and Pakistan.”

Speaking to The Express Tribune, K-P chief minister’s political coordinator Zar Gul Khan said the provincial government welcomed any move by the Centre to address KP’s concerns on CPEC. “We hope, at the CCI, there would be meaningful discussion on CPEC to resolve the issue.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 1^st, 2016.