The Finance Member sought extension six times after retirement. When the extension was not granted this time, an advisor was recruited, sources said.
Lahore: Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has hired consultants at attractive salaries in violation of the rules.
Consultants have been hired in OGRA at a time when the government itself is eliminating unnecessary posts in various ministries and institutions or reducing their number and merging them with other institutions, while the OGRA spokesperson says that they have been hired for specific days for the betterment of the institution.
According to information received from OGRA sources, the Chairman OGRA has taken this step by misusing his powers and ignoring transparency in the appointment of consultants, which gives the impression that important positions in the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) are being filled without advertisement or following merit.
OGRA already has a team of experienced and qualified officers, yet retired persons from the institution and former employees of major oil marketing companies have been appointed as ‘consultants’ on hefty salaries. Neither public advertisement nor formal procedure was followed for these appointments, which is a clear violation of the recruitment rules.
The general impression is that these positions are being used to reward specific individuals after retirement, which is putting an unnecessary burden on the national budget while the government itself is trying to reduce expenses by merging ministries and institutions.
The consultants to be kept on contract in OGRA include Ghulam Raza and Naeem Ghauri.
Naeem Ghauri has been a member of finance in OGRA and kept seeking extensions after retirement 6 times, while Naeem Ghauri was kept as a consultant when his tenure was not extended for the seventh time.
Since Ghulam Raza retired from a private oil company, he was also kept as a consultant. Under the rules, employees from class I to class IV can be kept in OGRA without advertisements, but not consultants.
When contacted, the OGRA spokesperson said that the expert has been appointed to review the existing framework for transportation of petroleum products. OGRA has hired an industry expert for a specific and time-bound assignment under its service regulations.
According to the OGRA spokesperson, the maximum period of those appointed has been fixed at 89 days.
On the other hand, the Oil Marketing Association has also accused OGRA Chairman Masroor Khan of bias and has written a letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, saying that he is making policies keeping in mind the interests of large oil marketing companies and due to which small companies that have invested Rs 2 billion are at risk.
In this regard, the spokesperson said that OGRA is performing its regulatory duties with full dedication and in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations. The Authority is fully aware of the changing challenges facing the industry and is committed to providing a fair and transparent regulatory environment for all stakeholders to ensure a level playing field.
