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ISLAMABAD:
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday accepted audit objections worth over Rs 20 billion related to the Petroleum Ministry, uncovering a large-scale non-recovery of oil taxes, questionable financial arrangements and weak enforcement mechanisms, leading to massive losses to the public exchequer.
During the parliamentary higher committee meeting, held under the chairmanship of Syed Naveed Qamar, lawmakers reviewed audit objections involving Rs 14.63 billion in unpaid oil taxes and penalties by Hascol and Synergy.
The panel chairman, expressing concern over the age of the case, asked how much had been recovered so far.
Audit officials told the committee that only Rs 190 crore had been recovered till date.
The Petroleum Secretary told the committee that Hascol had paid the amount, but it was deposited in the wrong account. However, the auditor general informed the committee that the account had already been closed and the record could no longer be corrected.
