Good leaders put their house in order first: Justice Minallah

IHC CJ urges lower judiciary judges to play their role at ceremony

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Athar Minallah has said that a good leader in judiciary, politics or any other arena always puts his or her house in order first.

The judge made the remarks while addressing the award ceremony of the six-day training course on “Leadership and Management” for district and sessions judges held at the Federal Judicial Academy on Saturday.

In his address, he said that leadership and management training is vital for promoting and ensuring rule of law.

“It is essential to be an effective leader so as to make an impact within your organisation. A single good leader can create an endless chain of social changes,” Justice Minallah stressed.

He also underscored the importance of judges of the lower judiciary, calling them important pillars of the judicial system and an important tier in the administration of justice.

The IHC chief justice also spoke at length about the qualities of a good leader, enumerating essential traits including honesty, integrity, motivation, good communication, and timely decision-making among others.

“Good leadership attributes are the same for all type of leaders whether they belong to politics, judiciary, sports or any other discipline. When a leader is honest, his honesty has the trickle-down effect,” he said.

He also urged sessions judges to put in practice their leadership attributes to reform the district judiciary and ameliorate the plight of the litigant public who are the key stakeholders of the justice system.

Justice Minallah also lamented growing nepotism in society. “The menace of nepotism has become a way of life in our society. As leaders, district and sessions judges must play the desired role to combat nepotism, which has permeated into the very fabric of society.”

The IHC chief justice, who was the chief guest, also distributed certificates among twenty-five heads of district judiciary from across Pakistan, including Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

During the training, a wealth of knowledge and experience were shared between the participants through syndicate discussions, command tasks, and presentations conducted in a participatory process. Its aim was to give participants an in-depth understanding of leadership and management for the effective administration of the justice system.