CARETAKER Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar Monday urged the people of Balochistan, particularly the youth, to avail themselves of the historic opportunity of development in the province, as the detractors of CPEC were about to lose their relevance very soon. Addressing the inaugural ceremony of Pak-China Friendship Hospital and Seawater Desalination Plant in Gwadar, he said the journey of CPEC would surely move forward, so joining the development course would be a prudent decision. “Those who think of changing the course (of CPEC) by force, violence or any other means are committing a historic blunder, as their relevance will be over very soon. The prudent decision in the nation’s fate is to join the course of development instead of resisting it and miss the opportunity,” he remarked.
The Prime Minister has surely conveyed a strong and convincing message both to people of Balochistan and detractors of the CPEC initiative, which has changed the course of history and laid firm foundations for accelerated growth and development in the otherwise backward province. As Mr. Kakar belongs to Balochistan and is fully abreast of the political and geo-strategic environment, it is hoped his advice would be taken seriously by all those who want a socio-economic transformation to take place on a fast track basis in the province. His statement is also reassuring in the sense that after a gap of several years, focus is shifting back to the CPEC and Pakistan and China signed a number of agreements to take the initiative forward during the Prime Minister’s recent visit to China. Balochistan is going to be the main beneficiary of the CPEC as a number of projects are under implementation aimed at making Gwadar a hub of economic, trade and investment opportunities, which would help bring about a significant change in the lives of the people. Similarly, most of the CPEC related connectivity projects wind down in Balochistan, connecting the province with the rest of the country and facilitating mobility. As pointed out by the PM, the ease in the form of reduced travel durations across the province was just due to the CPEC intervention. The Prime Minister was also aware of the security issue in the province and, therefore, held out an assurance to Chinese Ambassador in Pakistan Jiang Zaidong that the army, police and law-enforcement agencies would safeguard the Chinese workers even at the cost of their lives. This resolve augurs well for expediting the pace of developmental activities in the province. Completion of developmental schemes timely and their positive impact on the lives of the people would help foil designs of the local and foreign conspirators engaged in anti-state activities.
