The Federal Cabinet has set up a three-member Committee to recommend action on the enquiry commission report into the June oil shortage, which indicates that the Oil Marketing Companies (OMC) made a killing, gouging profits of as much as Rs 8 billion, as well as avoiding inventory losses caused by the price drop that took place then because international prices had collapsed. The report has named the DG Oil as bearing primary responsibility, while it mentions that there was a lack of coordination between various agencies of the Petroleum Division, which is part of the Energy Ministry The report mentions neither the Energy Minister, Omar Ayub Khan, nor the SAPM on Petroleum, Nadeem Babar, even though the latter was blamed at the time for playing a role.
That the shortage occurred, and found to be deliberate, should be particularly painful for a government that came to power on its message of accountability, and its claims that an honest government would ensure the making of decisions helping the ordinary man. Instead, as noted in this report, the oil marketing companies were able to prevent the passing on of the benefit of the world oil price fall to the consumer. That seems a classic case of poor decision-making benefiting the OMCs at the expense of the consumer. It is not as if this was the only pricing problem faced by the government, There have been wheat and sugar shortages, as well as a hike in drug prices, all of which have led to accusations of a scam. In this particular case, it seems highly unlikely that decisions could benefit entities by billions, and no palms were greased. The spotlight then turns on the political chiefs who should prevent such shenanigans. At the same time, the role of the regulator, OGRA, should be looked at carefully. The report recommended its dissolution as well as a performance appraisal of other regulatory authorities, including NEPRA, PEMRA and DRAP. The government must look at this recommendation seriously, though it remains to be seen if the Cabinet Committee will take any action against individuals responsible, or whether it will just find scapegoats.
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2020/12/16/action-on-oil/
Action on oil?: edit in Pakistan Today, Dec 17, 2020
The Federal Cabinet has set up a three-member Committee to recommend action on the enquiry commission report into the June oil shortage, which indicates that the Oil Marketing Companies (OMC) made a killing, gouging profits of as much as Rs 8 billion, as well as avoiding inventory losses caused by the price drop that took place then because international prices had collapsed. The report has named the DG Oil as bearing primary responsibility, while it mentions that there was a lack of coordination between various agencies of the Petroleum Division, which is part of the Energy Ministry The report mentions neither the Energy Minister, Omar Ayub Khan, nor the SAPM on Petroleum, Nadeem Babar, even though the latter was blamed at the time for playing a role.
That the shortage occurred, and found to be deliberate, should be particularly painful for a government that came to power on its message of accountability, and its claims that an honest government would ensure the making of decisions helping the ordinary man. Instead, as noted in this report, the oil marketing companies were able to prevent the passing on of the benefit of the world oil price fall to the consumer. That seems a classic case of poor decision-making benefiting the OMCs at the expense of the consumer. It is not as if this was the only pricing problem faced by the government, There have been wheat and sugar shortages, as well as a hike in drug prices, all of which have led to accusations of a scam. In this particular case, it seems highly unlikely that decisions could benefit entities by billions, and no palms were greased. The spotlight then turns on the political chiefs who should prevent such shenanigans. At the same time, the role of the regulator, OGRA, should be looked at carefully. The report recommended its dissolution as well as a performance appraisal of other regulatory authorities, including NEPRA, PEMRA and DRAP. The government must look at this recommendation seriously, though it remains to be seen if the Cabinet Committee will take any action against individuals responsible, or whether it will just find scapegoats.
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2020/12/16/action-on-oil/
Published in Pak Media comment and Pakistan