PAC orders complete audit of Ogra

Audit officials claim Ogra did not furnish record of regulatory matters and provided information on accounts only

ISLAMABAD: The sub-committee of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has directed the auditor general of Pakistan (AGP) to perform a complete audit of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) in its meeting here on Monday.

The audit authorities and chairperson Ogra Uzma Adil Khan had a verbal spat on the issue during the session.
Audit officials claimed that Ogra did not furnish the record of regulatory matters and had provided information on accounts only whereas Ogra officials maintained that they would provide record of accounts only as audit authorities did not have the mandate for other matters.

Chairperson Ogra maintained that her organization might have issued license to a company to which audit authorities may object, but access to regulatory matters was not their mandate as the measures came under law.

She questioned, “Who will give judgment if they object to a licence we have issued? In case of wrong decisions, people go to courts”.
She added, “All these paras are specific to Sui Northern [Gas Pipeline Limited]. If there is any issue regarding this, audit authorities should check the accounts of Sui Northern [Gas Pipeline Limited]”.

Convener committee Noor Alam Khan remarked that recoveries were not the only target but those who violated the rules also needed to be ascertained.

He called authorities from Ministry of Law and chief of legislation department of the National Assembly. He declared that audit authorities would conduct audit of Ogra and call a meeting of the departmental accounts committee again and that Ogra will provide the record.

Khan observed that every institution operating on Pakistan’s land was answerable to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) as well as to auditor general of Pakistan.

The meeting also reviewed the audit paras of PTA. Audit authorities told the committee that PTA had regulatory functions but they were eager to have them audited.

Convener committee said that mobile companies install towers but they do not function properly. He stressed that quality of service should be maintained.

PTA authorities told the committee that they were not authorized to block any material on their own. They forwarded the suggestions to Facebook or Twitter. Facebook blocked 70 to 80 per cent of the recommended material but the issue was with Twitter.