ISLAMABAD: A specially convened All Parties Conference (APC) Thursday gave a go-ahead to the government on the ambitious China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and agreed on priority development of the Western corridor to link Gwadar with Kashgar.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, chairing the second All Parties Conference here at the PM House, said that the political leaders endorsed the CPEC project, aimed at building road, rail networks, airports and sea ports, along with economic zones and power houses across the country.
The meeting was convened to discuss the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), its route, related projects and to seek suggestions to ensure that all provinces get equal benefit. The earlier APC on the CPEC meeting was held on May 13, however it remained inconclusive.
The Prime Minister thanked the national political leadership for their support and said a parliamentary committee would also be setup for oversight of the projects under the CPEC and to ensure that reservations, if any, are addressed. He said a working group would also be setup to address the reservations of the provinces.
He said the CPEC would help Pakistan achieve its cherished dream of becoming a developed country and said the project would not only help economic growth of Pakistan, but would also benefit the regional countries.
He was appreciative of the political leadership of the country for standing united on the important national issue and for a consensus decision.
He said the CPEC would help equitable development across the country and noted with appreciation the role of China in this regard.
On the contrary, he said the current era was totally different, as all political forces now stood together to work for development and progress of the country and to further strengthen democracy.
He termed it a healthy tradition and hoped and prayed that the good convention of collective decision making on vital national issues, continues.
He particularly lauded the all out support of China to Pakistan on the mega project, which he said, would serve to be a landmark achievement.
Stressing the need of evolving consensus on the issue, the Prime Minister said, having difference of opinion was a healthy tradition and helps in bringing about improvements.
Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal who had given a detailed briefing at the last session, briefly updated the participants and said the world today saw Pakistan as the focus of Chinese investment and they too were keen to invest.
He clarified the misconceptions about the project and said it was not confined to a single physical route; rather it was a concept that included roads, airports, ports, energy and development projects.
He said the US 46 billion Chinese investment was not meant to be distributed as it relates to several energy, road and rail projects all over the country. He also gave a breakdown of various projects and clarified that the Orange Line in Lahore was not part of CPEC.
He said no new road was being constructed as part of the route, rather existing road network was being improved and interconnectivity increased so that the entire country benefited. He said roads along three major alignments would be upgraded for improved North-South connectivity.
He invited the representatives of political parties for their input and suggestions in this regard. He said the projects along the western alignment would be completed by 2016.
Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafiq briefed the participants about the up-gradation of rail routes. He said a new rail track would be constructed to link Gwadar Port with national rail link.
The meeting was attended by representatives and heads of political parties. The Pakistan Peoples Party delegation was headed by Syed Khurshid Shah, PTI delegation by Shah Mahmood Qureshi, ANP by Asfandyar Wali, MQM by Farooq Sattar, JUI (F) by Maulana Fazalur Rehman, JI by Siraj ul Haq, BNP by Dr Jehanzeb Jamaldini, and PML (Q) by Mushahid Hussain Syed.
Mehmood Khan Achakzai of PKMAP, Hasil Khan Bizanjo of NP, Ijaz-ul-Haq of PML(Z), Aftab Ahmed Sherpao of QWP, Senator Prof Sajid Mir, Syed Ghazi Jamal and Alhaj Shah Jee Gul from FATA, Peer Ejaz Hashmi represented their respective political parties.
Also in attendance were Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah, KPK Pervaiz Khattak, Balochistan Abdul Malik Baloch, Leader of House in Senate Raja Muhammad Zafarul Haq, Minister for Defence Kh Muhammad Asif, Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar, Minister for Information Pervaiz Rashid, Minister for Petroleum Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Railways Kh Saad Rafiq, Lt Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch, Minister for Safron, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on National Affairs Irfan Siddiqui, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, Special Assistants Barrister Zafarullah Khan and Khawaja Zaheed Ahmed.
