Senate panel seeks 16-year record of oil and gas companies' profits

The Senate Functional Committee on Devolution's sub-committee, chaired by Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro, has directed the Petroleum Division to submit, within two days, a detailed record of profits earned by oil and gas companies since 2009, including how those earnings were distributed and utilised, as it reviewed the implementation of Article 172(3) of the Constitution relating to provincial ownership of natural resources.

The committee was informed that the Petroleum Division had written to provincial chief secretaries, reminding them that Article 172(3) envisages provincial ownership of shares in state-owned oil and gas companies and representation of provinces on their boards.

Officials said consultations with provincial governments on board nominations and shareholding arrangements would begin shortly.

Senator Ghumro directed the ministry to immediately seek nominations from provincial governments, saying the federation had no authority to appoint provincial representatives. 

He stressed that the constitutional rights of oil- and gas-producing provinces should be implemented "in letter and spirit."

The meeting also reviewed the issue of vacant federal government posts, with committee members expressing concern over nearly 275,000 sanctioned positions that remain unfilled despite budget allocations.

The panel observed that the continued vacancies undermined citizens' constitutional right to employment under Article 38(g). Members said Sindh was short of at least 83,000 federal positions under the provincial quota, while Balochistan faced a shortfall of around 27,000 posts.

The committee directed the Establishment Division to review previous notifications on provincial quotas, establish a dedicated cell to address the issue and submit all relevant documents, along with a timeline for corrective measures, within one week.

It also sought a schedule for filling vacancies in BS-1 to BS-16, recruitment plans through the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) for BS-16 and BS-17 posts, and the timetable for promotion boards for officers in BS-18 to BS-22.

Senator Ghumro said it was unjustifiable that thousands of funded government positions remained vacant while unemployment continued to rise and graduates struggled to find jobs.