General News of Monday, 12 January 2015
Source: Graphic Online
The Managing Director (MD) of the Metro Mass Transit Ltd, Mr Noble Appiah, has said investigations into the operations of the company should lead to the confidence of the public as they are aimed at putting things right.
“The alleged malfeasance that is being uncovered is at best dividends of good corporate governance that everyone must be equally held to,” he said.
Mr Appiah said this in an interview with the Daily Graphic on the sidelines of a workshop on effective transport management in Accra.
He said he appreciated the challenges associated with introducing change and added that although some workers in the company might want to resist the change that he intended to bring in the company’s operations, he was committed to the cause.
“I will remain focused and work in the best interest of the company and the public at large. The company will not detract from its objective of transforming into a modern public transport operator,” he said.
According to Mr Appiah, the management of the company has crafted a five-year strategic plan, with seven goals, which seeks to retool the company, make it more customer focused and financially sustainable with an improved working environment.
The strategic plan, he said, also stated the measures to be put in place to incorporate safety and risk management in all its processes and provide regular training and a reward scheme for staff.
The plan would also spell out several projects to make MMT customer friendly, including installing entertainment gadgets at its terminals and equipping frontline staff with good customer service skills, he added.
“The strategic plan also talks about expanding access by increasing our fleet of buses and introducing new routes while reorganising existing routes. The company also intends to diversify its services by adding international routes and specialised services for targeted clients,” he said.
Mr Appiah said another key goal of the MMT was to make itself financially sustainable. In that regard, procurement would be looked at and all revenue leakages blocked.
He said contrary to claims in recent times, the company was not in dire financial straits.
Mr Appiah said the company recorded a 100 per cent growth in its operating profit in 2013 and 80 per cent growth in net profit and was set on the path of profitability.
The company, he said, had been able to achieve that though its fares were 15 to 25 per cent lower than what pertained in the country.
According to him, the company’s terminals were currently being rehabilitated while moves had been initiated to procure new buses, some of which had been specifically built for intra-city services.
He spoke of his determination to transform the company and urged the staff to move in tandem with him.
He said systems were being put in place to reward hard work, as well as expose the bad lots.