Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday was informed that Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) disposed of 325 expensive vehicles on throwaway prices to its employees. The committee headed by Syed Khurshid Shah took up a question moved by the parliamentarian Naeema Kishwar Khan that public vehicles have been sold to the employees of OGDCL at cheap rate during the last five years.
Acting Managing Director Mohammad Rafi informed the committee that 325 vehicles were sold to entitled employees of the company in accordance with car policy of the company. The Chairman Committee observed that as many as 37 vehicles were sold at Rs 1000 per vehicle as the major shareholder of the company is the government.
Acting MD urged the committee that entitled employees are allowed to purchase the vehicles after five years of use or on retirement under buy-back option in accordance with company's car policy duly approved by the company's board of directors. He further stated that the policy is in line with car policy prevailing in the corporate sector in general and E&P companies of oil & gas sector such as Pakistan Petroleum Limited, Pakistan Oil Fields Ltd, OMV Pakistan, SSGCL etc in particular.
Responding to committee's members, he said the company is not aware of the market value at the time of disposal as vehicles are sold out to entitled officers under buy-back option on the prescribed rules already available in the policy at 10 percent of the original price.
In its ruling, the Chairman Committee said the OGDCL and other public sector companies to modify their car policy and submit compliance report with PAC Secretariat. Member Committee Mian Mannan recommended the committee that the matter of 325 vehicles on throwaway price should be referred to FIA for investigation. Another member Sheikh Rohail Asghar suggested car policy of OGDCL should be abolished and vehicles should be disposed of through open auction. MNA Dr Azra Afzal Pechuho recommended that magnetisation policy should be introduced in the OGDCL.