ISLAMABAD: The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project is crucial for Pakistan’s economic stability and national security and it should not be made controversial like Kalabagh Dam, said Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination, Riaz Hussain Pirzada on Saturday.

“CPEC is a game changer for Pakistan and the entire region and nobody will be allowed to make it controversial,” he said while responding to a question about the reservations of smaller provinces about the change in the project’s western route.

He said the CPEC project would pass through the entire country and all provinces will benefit from, in particular the backward areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

“The federal government has time and again assured smaller provinces that CPEC’s western route would be built on priority basis and all work would be carried out in collaboration with all stakeholders,” he said.

The minister said the government would fulfill the commitments regarding CEPC made at the All Parties Conference in May, 2015.

Published in Dawn, January 3rd, 2016