The Board of Directors (BoD) of Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) has passed a resolution to appoint M Riaz Khan as new Managing Director (MD) of the company. Khan has replaced Masood Siddiqui who was sacked by caretaker government over charges of corruption and illegal appointment. "After endorsing appointment of M Riaz Khan, OGDCL board has owned the decision of Prime Minister to sack the former MD OGDCL Masood Siddiqui," an official said.
Sources said that OGDCL had conveyed to London Stock Exchange, Karachi Stock Exchange and Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) about the appointment of M Riaz Khan as new chief OGDCL. Former MD Masood Siddiqui had served a legal notice on OGDCL terming his removal as illegal. In his legal notice, Masood said that Directors of the board had fiducially under obligations to their company and so are duty-bound to act in the interest of the company and not to comply with illegal orders from the government.
"Chairman OGDC board, chief secretary Balochistan, head Human Resource Committee, some other directors including Raza-Ullah Khan, Sikandar Muhammad Khan and Anwar Ali had signed the resolution to appoint M Riaz Khan as new chief OGDCL," sources added.
Caretaker Prime Minister Mir Hazar Khan Khoso had approved the summary of removal of Masood Siddiqui moved by Petroleum Ministry on Monday. According to charge sheet against former chief OGDCL Masood Siddiqui, a copy of which is available with Business Recorder, Petroleum Ministry said that it had come to knowledge that Masood Siddiqui had been managing the affairs of OGDCL in partisan, selective, arbitrary and non-transparent manner. He arbitrarily hired a bullet-proof vehicle in Karachi at a hefty rent of Rs 1,201,500 per month. Prime Minister had been informed that in another case regarding inquiry into embezzlement of High Speed Diesel (HSD) pilferage worth Rs 320 million at Tando Alam logistics, the two inquiry committees comprising senior level officials of OGDCL had established involvement of Niaz Ahmad Arbab Operating Manager (Logistics) was suspended from service in January 2012.
Siddiqui, however on the recommendations of his officer Colonel Javaid Iqbal (Retd) quashed the earlier findings of two senior level officer inquiry committees and instead outsourced the probe to a private security company on payment of Rs 2.2 million. This private company exonerated all the accused earlier found involved by two in-house inquiry committees of OGDCL. Thereafter, Siddiqui reinstated the accused in August 2012 in blatant disregard of rules and policy since no policy allowed the MD to outsource the investigation of a serious matter involving million of rupees.
The past government had offered the top lucrative slot to Siddiqui without any advertisement though it had sought nomination of four candidates from the head-hunter for the post of OGDC managing director, which was also contrary to rules and regulations. He was given contract of three years service against the two-year contracts advertised in newspapers. According to recruitment policy, 55 year's age limit was set for MD, but he was 49 years old that had also sparked controversy.
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