LONDON: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Friday said that if looted money could be brought back to the country, fundraising for the Diamer Bhasha dam would be unnecessary.
The CJP is currently on a fundraising visit to the United Kingdom.
“People have to answer how they made properties worth Rs3 billion in Dubai. The entire wealth, which belongs to the people of Pakistan, must be given to the dam fund. There will be strict accountability if the money is not returned voluntarily,” he said.
“There will be no further need for fundraising if we recover billions from the looters. Those who sent billions by launches will soon have to present themselves before accountability,” he said.
“Those who looted billions didn’t give any amount.”
Underscoring the importance of water to the country, he remarked that “water is linked with life. If there is no water, there is no life”.
The CJP explained that the apex court chose the Diamer-Bhasha dam due to a lack of agreement on Kalabagh dam, adding that Rs1500 billion is required to construct the dam.
In his last address in the UK, CJP Nisar had said that construction of dams is imperative for Pakistan.
In a sitting with British parliamentarians of Pakistani origin in London, the CJP had said that funds were required to construct Diamer-Bhasha Dam. He had said that the unresolved water crisis will force the people to migrate from the country if not addressed.
The CJP has initiated a dam crusade to overcome the water crisis in the country. On July 4, the apex court had issued directives that the construction of Diamer-Bhasha and Mohmand dams should start immediately, and appealed to the Pakistanis, including those residing abroad, to donate for the cause.
The chief justice had initiated the donation process by announcing Rs1 million donation for the cause during the hearing of a case pertaining to the construction of Kalabagh Dam.
“It was said that ‘even SC’s father’ cannot construct dams,” CJP Nisar had noted, reminding the naysayers that the Constitution of Pakistan had given the court the power to make it happen.
Subsequently, PM Imran Khan after coming into power had also decided to support the CJP’s dam initiative and appealed overseas Pakistanis to contribute at least USD1000 to the cause.
