This is apropos a news item "Security, execution of CPEC: Forces ready to pay any price" carried by the newspaper on Saturday. According to it, Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Raheel Sharif during his visit to the Headquarters of the newly-raised Special Security Division (SSD) for security of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) stated that the armed forces are ready to pay any price in relation to the security and completion of this mega project.
Following a briefing on the security aspects of the CPEC, General Raheel Sharif reiterated Pakistan Army's commitment to provide security to the CPEC and the workforce involved, terming the project a game-changer for Pakistan which has the potential to transform the lives of people of the country. The CoAS reportedly emphasised the need to ensure a peaceful environment for executing all the planned developmental projects.
That the economic corridor project is a matter of life and death for the country is a fact that has found its best expression in the reiteration of armed forces' commitment to the $46 billion project. Earlier, the army chief had described the economic corridor as a national obligation. This project, however, requires a similar commitment from the political leadership of the country. Unfortunately, however, our politicians are still bickering over the routes of projects. What message are they giving to the world in general and China in particular?