We are not detracted from our strategic growth agenda - MD

Mr Noble Appiah, Managing Director of Metro Mass Transit Ltd (MMT), says the company is on course to achieving its objective of a modern public transport operator. Reacting to alleged malfeasance at MMT which is being investigated, Mr Appiah said uncovering cases of wrong doing were best dividends of good corporate governance that everyone must uphold. He said current reports of investigations should rather build confidence in the company as it demonstrated the effort to do things right. He added that he would remain focused and work in the best interest of the company and the public at large. Mr Appiah said since the launch of the company�s Five-year Strategic Plan, the management and staff had been working diligently to achieve the stated objectives in the document. He said the company would not be detracted from its strategic growth agenda but would remain focused on pursuing its transformation agenda. Mr Appiah, who took over as the Managing Director in June 2013 has, with the support of the Board, developed a five-year strategic plan which seeks to retool the company, make it more customer focused, safer, and financially sustainable with an improved working environment. Mr Appiah, with over 30 years experience in the transport industry, said MMT was not a distressed company. In 2013, he said, the company recorded 100 per cent growth in its operating profit and 80 per cent growth in net profit despite its fares being 15-25 per cent lower than its competitors. Since an efficient public transport system was key to the growth of any economy and government had stated its determination to transform the sector, Mr Appiah said the MMT Board and Management had been working hard to ensure that the goals set in the strategic plan were achieved. The strategic plan contained in an 80-page document on improving safety by mainstreaming safety and risk management in all its process, and providing regular training and a reward scheme for its staff to ensure their buses are safe to travel on. The Plan also spells out several projects to make MMT customer-friendly including installing entertainment on buses and at its terminals, training its front-line staff in customer service and making its buses and terminals customer-friendly. It also defines new services such self-advance tickets and reliable services as well as expanding access by increasing its fleets of buses, introduce new routes while reorganising existing routes. The company also intends to diversify its services by adding international routes and specialised services for targeted clients. Mr Appiah said MMT had already begun a restructuring programme to realign various departments and units as part of the Plan. MMT is also in the process of matching staff to job roles, pay and benefits which would ensure, among other things, that drivers enjoy a more commensurate remuneration. Although the Plan appears ambitious, Mr Appiah said the company, with its Board, was up to the task. He said the company�s terminals were seeing a facelift and the Government was supporting them to bring in new buses, some of which were specifically built for intra-city while others would be suitable for inter-city services. The Managing Director spoke of his determination to transform the company and urged the staff to come along, adding that systems were being put in place to reward hard work and to get rid of the bad nuts.