ISLAMABAD: The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has raised serious concerns over alleged malfeasance and governance lapses in the Power Planning and Monitoring Company (PPMC), a key think tank of the Power Division that replaced the Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) and offers lucrative remuneration packages.
According to audit findings for the financial year 2024–25, PPMC violated its own HR Manual during the recruitment of Management Trainee Officers (MTOs). Under Clause 6.10 and 6.11 of the manual, if a selected candidate fails to join, an alternate candidate must be offered the post, failing which the recruitment process must be annulled and re-initiated.
Audit documents revealed that PPMC initially advertised nine MTO positions across four categories in February 2025, receiving 2,940 applications, of which 822 candidates were shortlisted. However, without issuing any corrigendum or re-advertisement, the number of posts was increased in stages — first to 25 in June 2025 and later to 28 — in clear violation of transparent recruitment practices.
The audit also highlighted inconsistent application of recruitment rules. While alternate candidates were offered appointments in some categories where selected candidates did not join, no such offers were made in the MTO (Finance) category despite the availability of shortlisted candidates and vacant posts. Moreover, different assessment thresholds were applied across categories, with candidates having lower consolidated scores selected in some cadres, while higher benchmarks were enforced for MTO (Finance), resulting in continued vacancies.
Due to these irregularities, 16 out of 28 sanctioned MTO posts remained vacant, undermining operational capacity and damaging the credibility and fairness of the recruitment process. The AGP attributed the situation to weak compliance with the HR Manual, lack of structured manpower planning, non-transparent expansion of posts, and inconsistent selection criteria.
The audit concluded that these weaknesses led to the irregular expansion and non-finalisation of the MTO recruitment process, causing prolonged vacancies up to FY2024–25. The matter was taken up with PPMC management in December 2025, but no response was received.
The AGP recommended that PPMC strictly adhere to its HR Manual by issuing proper corrigenda or re-advertisements for increased posts, offering timely appointments to alternate candidates, and finalising recruitment through uniform selection criteria.
Separately, the audit raised objections to the irregular payment of board meeting fees amounting to Rs0.780 million to the Managing Director/Deemed Director of PPMC.
During the audit of accounts for FY2024–25, it was found that board meeting fees totaling Rs0.780 million were paid to Abid Lodhi, MD/Executive Director of PPMC, without documentary evidence showing that such payments were part of his approved terms and conditions, endorsed by the competent authority under the SOE remuneration framework, or explicitly approved by the Board or shareholders.
The AGP noted that the Managing Director was already receiving regular remuneration, and the additional payment of board meeting fees lacked a clear approval mechanism distinguishing executive compensation from board-level fees. This, the audit said, posed a risk of double compensation and potential misuse of public funds, reflecting weak governance controls and non-compliance with the SOE Act, 2023.
The audit observed that the irregular payments continued up to FY2024–25 and were taken up with management in December 2025, but no reply was received.
The AGP has recommended that PPMC ensure any payment of board meeting fees to executive officers is explicitly approved by the competent authority, clearly stated in approved terms and conditions, and strictly regulated to prevent double compensation, in line with the SOE Act, 2023, and applicable ownership and remuneration policies.
Story by Mushtaq Ghumman
