STC pays $700,000 to govt to defray loan for buses
The State Transport Company (STC) has presented $700,000 to the government as the first tranche payment for the 50 buses that the government bought for the company in October last year.
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The Managing Director of the STC, Nana Akomea, told the Daily Graphic in Accra on Monday that STC was poised to pay a further $1 million to the government in March 2018.
He said the payment was made possible as a result of the revamping of the company’s operational strategy, saying: “STC is poised to dramatically improve revenue and meet all its obligations to the government and other creditors.”
The 50 buses were bought at a cost of $16 million and Nana Akomea said STC was committed to defraying all the cost within the repayment period agreed with the government.
The STC, which was formerly a vibrant state-owned public transport company, went down for years as a result of poor management and lack of capital injection.
Operational strategy
As part of the strategy, Nana Akomea said, STC was opening loading stations at transportation centres to attract more passengers.
For instance, he said, the company had opened a loading station at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, while plans were afoot to open one at Madina and another in Cape Coast.
Besides, he said, the company had rolled out an electronic weighing scale.
He said it would also introduce an electronic ticketing system on its buses by the end of this year.
Cost-cutting
Nana Akomea said the management had taken some cost-cutting measures, including salary rationalisation and the modification of some existing agreements with some private sector service providers.
He said when all the measures were fully implemented, it would generate more revenue for the company.
SSNIT indebtedness
He said STC would also focus on repaying its indebtedness of about GH¢200 million to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
He said the company would have a payment plan with SSNIT.
“The company is making all efforts to improve its service to its customers and I urge Ghanaians to continue to patronise the STC service,” Nana Akomea said.