MUZAFFARABAD, June 7: AJK Prime Minister Sardar Sikandar Hayat on Monday said no society could flourish without the concept of reward and punishment, but simultaneously every institution was bound to build the trust of public in it.

He said this at a briefing on the working and performance of the Ehtesab Bureau by its chairman, Maj-Gen (Retd) Sarfraz Iqbal. The PM, who has often criticized the working of the bureau, said he wanted since long to visit the bureau "to provide a strong base to the authority of this institution but could not come due to other engagements.

"I believe in the authority of the institutions, but side by side I am also for the facilitation of the people by the institutions," he said. "It gives me much pain to note that we kept on increasing our grades and perks but our institutions paid little attention towards alleviation of the common man's sufferings," the PM said.

He recalled that the Ehtesab Bureau was established by an act of parliament and it was not above the Constitution, the law and the government. "In parliamentary democracy the prime minister possesses executive powers and since this form of government has been successfully functioning in the AJK, it is in agreement with the temperament of the people here.

Therefore, the impression that any institution can challenge the authority of the prime minister should come to end," he said. He asserted that the government was in favour of transparent and impartial accountability and would facilitate and meet every legitimate requirement of the bureau for this purpose.

"Accountability is the common responsibility of the government and the bureau, but the bureau is also required to remove public complaints against it." He stressed that the accused should be given a fair chance to defend their position.

"The detainees can come out on bail on the very next day of their arrest, but is there any remedy or compensation for the damage caused to their reputation and honour?"

He said corruption in AJK was comparatively less than in Pakistan "because here the literacy rate was better and budgets were spent on the ground". The bureau, he said, should not paralyze or bulldoze the authority of any other institution because problems crop up with such a practice.

Earlier, the EB chairman said that they would continue to endeavour for impartial, transparent and effective accountability without any favour or fear and would strictly go by the merits of the case.

Accountability, he said, was not possible without political will, public support, suitable legislation and logistics and a strong anti-corruption strategy with inputs from all segments of society.