- Mushahid says $50bn initiative is a national strategic project with bright future, economic security
LAHORE: Parliamentary Committee on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Chairman Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed has said that the mega economic corridor is a national strategic project and cannot be attributed to an individual, a political party or a province.
Speaking at a seminar here on Saturday, the $50 billion project would be completed by 2030. “This (project) is a guarantee of a bright future, economic security and prosperity,” he said, adding that CPEC would be a game changer for Pakistan, South Asia and the Middle East.
Mushahid said that the anti-Pakistan forces, including India, were adamant to sabotage this project and Pakistanis would have to pursue it like attaining of the nuclear technology. He said that the military leadership would defeat anti-CPEC intrigues of the forces active against the project.
He said that the arrest of Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jhadev was a glaring example of Indian intervention to the project. He said that the CPEC was the costliest-ever project between the two countries in the world history.
He recalled that Quaid-i-Azam had once predicted to a foreign journalist that Pakistan would be a centre-stage of the world politics. “His vision has been materialised in the form of CPEC,” he said. Pakistan had brought China closer to the US in 1970, he also informed the gathering.
He appreciated Chinese support to Pakistan and told the audience that China received not a single penny against the military weapon it provided to Pakistan in between 1965 to 1980. Pakistan has reciprocated this friendship equally on all the fronts, he said.
He said that China has also condemned US President Donald Trump for criticising Pakistan in war against terrorism. “The US is no more the sole world power, as a good number of new centres of power have emerged today,” he said.
He said that the Chinese leadership has brought 700 million Chinese out of poverty in the last 25 years and the 21st century belongs to Asia. He said that CPEC would play pivotal role in development of infrastructure, energy projects, deep-sea port and the Special Economic Zones in Pakistan.
He said that Pakistan has started mining in the area of Thar after the start of the CPEC project. Today, some 22000 Pakistani students were studying at different Chinese universities, he said, adding that China was providing scholarships to 5000 students.
