Supreme Court's Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan Saturday said that judges must perform their duties free of influence or control from other actors – judges have to work with an independent mind to create a just society.
He was speaking at a certificate-awarding ceremony at the Federal Judicial Academy in Islamabad, which concluded a two-week Federal Judicial Education Programme for Additional District and Sessions Judges and Civil Judges/ Judicial Magistrates.
He observed that judicial academies play a vital role in the effective administration of justice. Academies not only improve the level of knowledge of judges but also strive to bring attitudinal changes amongst trainees, which pave the way for professionalism.
Justice Afghan said that this is an era of Information Technology (IT), and judges must improve their IT skills to administer justice effectively.
"The visionary efforts of Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Advisor FJA, BoG, to reinvigorate the FJA are highly commendable," he observed.
Advising the new graduates, he said, "Merit speaks. I still believe in merit, and whatever is written in Loh-e-Mahfooz, one will get it, but one must be his/her own person and do whatever possible he/she can do."
The judge lamented the decline of grace and "mentorship" in the legal profession and the fall in the standard of legal education.
"Together we can create a better society. Take lawyers to work, do deep study, conduct research and never work in a mechanical manner but according to facts and law," he emphasised.
Earlier, in his lecture on judgment writing and in subsequent interactions and responses to trainee questions, he shared his decades-long experience as a lawyer and currently as a judge of the Supreme Court.
"Justice is about balance and harmony, and this broken and rotten system can work effectively provided that judges and lawyers are determined to create a just, balanced and harmonious society," he said.
Justice Afghan reminded the graduates that God had chosen them as a judge and that judges must perform their duties free of influence or control from other actors – judges have to work with an independent mind-to create a just society.
Speaking on the occasion, Federal Judicial Academy Director General Hayat Ali Shah presented an overview of a two-week Federal Judicial Education Programme.
"Academies not only enhance professionalism amongst trainees but also make them conscious of emerging issues and challenges in the profession for effective service delivery," the DG concluded.
