ISLAMABAD: Lt Gen. (Retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa today resigned as Chairman of China-Pak Economic Corridor and Khalid Mansoor was appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister on CPEC Affairs. Now Khalid Mansoor will lead the CPEC authority.
A notification issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said Khalid Mansoor had been appointed as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on CPEC Affairs with immediate effect. The appointment was made in an honorary capacity, it added.
Bajwa announced his departure in a tweet, saying Mansoor was fully equipped to lead the authority in the future.
“I bow my head before Allah Almighty for giving me an opportunity to raise and steer the important institution of CPEC Authority as one window for all CPEC projects, charting the future direction,” he said, adding that his work “wouldn’t have been possible without [the] full confidence and support” of Prime Minister Imran Khan and his government.
Bajwa termed CPEC as a “lifeline for Pakistan”, saying it would “transform us into a progressive and fully developed country”.
Federal Planning Minister Asad Umar paid tribute to Bajwa for his services “in moving CPEC forward and playing a vital role in broadening of the CPEC scope with a transition to [the] second phase of CPEC”.
He welcomed Khalid Mansoor as the special assistant to the prime minister for CPEC affairs who has a vast experience in corporate sector and had been working with mega Chinese companies. Asad Umer termed him an ideal candidate to lead the CPEC programme.
Mansoor’s “vast corporate experience, with extensive work with Chinese companies and his direct involvement in leading some of the biggest CPEC projects makes him an ideal person to lead the next phase of CPEC”, Umar said.
