ISLAMABAD: The Petroleum Division has asked the federal cabinet to approve the nomination of two additional secretaries (admin & policy) as ex-officio directors on the boards of eight companies.
These companies include Pakistan State Oil (PSO), Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGCL), Oil & Gas Development Company (OGDCL), Pakistan Petroleum (PPL), Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL), Pakistan LNG Terminals Limited (PLTL), Government Holdings (Private) Limited (GHPL) and Pak-Arab Refinery (PARCO).
According to sources, the federal cabinet on Tuesday is likely to grant its approval on a summary of the Petroleum Division titled “Alteration in the Nomination of Ex-Officio Directors on the Boards of Companies under the purview of Petroleum Division”.
They said that the division had earlier submitted a summary to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on November 10, 2020, following with the PM had approved the placement of this summary before the cabinet.
The federal cabinet is also expected to take a decision on a Finance Division summary regarding strengthening and reorganising the office of the auditor general of Pakistan (AGP).
Keeping in mind the pivotal role of the AGP office in accountability, transparency and overall governance in the country, the federal cabinet had earlier directed Adviser to Prime Minister for Institutional Reforms and Austerity Dr Ishrat Hussain to submit a proposal in this regard.
For this purpose, Dr Hussain held a series of meetings with senior management of the AGP and the controller general of accounts (CGA) during May-August 2019. He also sent a report to the adviser to PM on finance and revenue.
The report highlighted the six pillars of the reforms package, including strengthening the office of AGP by ensuring its autonomy and independence; improving the competence in the officers and staff of the AGP office; the shift to a sectoral and thematic audit approach among the staff in emerging areas; automation of the business process by introducing Audit Management Information System (AMIS); and developing a new Performance Management System (PMS).
