PESHAWAR, June 24: Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan on Monday said the country might not survive if the current civil and military leadership did not begin self-accountability and apply the same to their subordinate officials to curb corruption.

“The wrongdoings of the successive governments have taken the country to the current crises on different fronts and I feel the country may not survive if concrete steps are not taken this time against corruption and lawlessness,” the chief justice said during an award and prize distribution ceremony of judicial officers under the Reward Policy here.

The chief justice said as a first step for saving the country, the civil and military leadership should start self accountability and as a second step heads of different institutions should be shown the door if found involved in corruption.

He said the current Pakistan was entirely different from that of the past due to repeated wrong decisions of the successive governments as they had put it in deep crisis, including lawlessness.

Justice Dost Mohammad said the country’s top political leadership instead of only shouting political slogans should provide relief to the people by doing something tangible for them.

He said Pakistan had been facing economic crises and therefore, it was necessary that the government reduce expenses through austerity.

The chief justice declared the successive governments’ failure to establish rule of law as the main cause of the current delicate law and order situation and said there was a need for establishing the rule of law for saving the country.

He said unfortunately, the elite class formulated policies that put the country into multiple crises.

“This is the prime moment and last opportunity for us all, including the judiciary, lawyers, civil society and elected provincial and federal governments, to join hands to establish the rule of law,” he said.

Justice Dost Mohammad said there were authentic reports of spy agencies about external interference in terrorist activities and the Nanga Parbat killing of foreign tourists confirmed them.

He said the poor performance of the prosecution and investigation agencies led to acquittal of culprits in the courts.

The chief justice said the judiciary was short of judicial officers and thus, further burdening the existing judicial officers.

He said in the past, a summary was sent to the provincial government for making appointments to the subordinate judiciary to the high court but certain elements created a hurdle to it.

Justice Dost Mohammad said the court would take up the matter with the current provincial government and give it an assurance that judicial officers would be appointed on merit and on the basis of their competency.

He later distributed special shields, commendation certificates, cash prizes and laptops among the judges, who have performed well.

Among these judges, whop received special shields, were Peshawar district and sessions judge (DSJ) Shehbar Khan, Dera Ismail Khan DSJ Mohammad Rauf Khan, Nowshera DSJ Abdul Rauf Khan, Balakot additional district and sessions judge Ahmad Sultan Tareen, Bannu ADSJ Kaleem Arshid, Peshawar ADSJ Kulsoom Azam, Mansehra ADSJs Munawar Khan and Liaquat Ali, senior civil judges Usman Bashir and Hina Khan, and civil judges Lubna Zaman, Nusrat Naz and Maria Wajahat.

The judges, who got cash prizes and laptops, included district and sessions judges Mohammad Ayub Khan, Mohammad Shahid Khan and Mohammad Arshid Khan, additional district and sessions judges Rajab Ali Khan, Ahsanullah Mehsud, Nusrat Yasmeen, Aftab Afridi and Ambreen Naveed, senior civil judges Manzoor Qadir, Sunbal Naseer and Azeemullah, civil judges Mohammad Ilyas, Mohammad Arbab Sohail, Tahira Zainab, Attaullah, Zahidullah, Hina Mehwish, Imrana Shaheen and Mohammad Haroon, and judicial magistrates Rashid Rauf and Ahsanul Haq.