April 19, 2008	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 12, 1429

ISLAMABAD, April 18: PPP Senator Babar Awan on Friday sent a resolution to the upper house of parliament seeking dissolution of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) which he said was following anti-people policies.

The body was set up through an ordinance promulgated on March 28, 2002, by President Pervez Musharraf with the aim of fostering competition, increasing private investment and ownership in midstream and downstream petroleum industry and protecting the public interest.

Mr Awan said Ogra should be substituted with a parliamentary committee.

He said that Ogra was a non-representative body of profiteers and it was meant to protect the interests of few big commercial organisations. Therefore, its mode of working was against the principles and policy of the state as enshrined in the Constitution and was anti-people.

The resolution will be taken up for discussion in the coming session of the Senate expected to begin on April 25.