A Pakistan Senate panel has expressed concern over the slow pace of development on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and dissatisfaction being expressed by the Chinese companies over the negligible progress over the past three years.
While presiding over the Pakistan Senate Standing Committee on Planning and Development, its Chairman Saleem Mandviwalla said the Chinese were not satisfied with the pace of work on CPEC and no progress on the portfolio was seen during the last three years, Dawn news reported.
“They are crying,” said Mandviwalla, adding that the “Chinese ambassador has complained to me that you have destroyed CPEC and no work was done in the past three years,” he said.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on CPEC Affairs, Khalid Mansoor also endorsed Mandviwalla saying the Chinese companies were not satisfied with the government’s institutions and their pace of work.
He said he himself was not satisfied with the progress of work on Gwadar Airport and assured the panel that things were now on recovery mode.
Mansoor, who recently joined the government after it removed former CPEC Authority chief Asim Saleem Bajwa, briefed the committee on the issues faced by the investors in terms of compliance with investment and agreement of CPEC Phase 1 Power Projects.