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The management of the Metro Mass Transit Limited (MMTL) is to roll out an electronic system of ticketing to eliminate human involvement in cash handling in a bid to curb corruption within the company. This is part of efforts to introduce Information and Communication Technology in its operations. The management will also introduce an initiative that seeks the involvement of the general public to support the company to remove the inconsistencies in the ticketing system and educate the public on the need to pay the right fares. �We want the public to know that it is criminal not to pay the right fares because we are losing money and this is affecting the growth of the organisation,� the Managing Director of MMTL, Mr Noble Appiah, told the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday, during the launch of the first phase of the 2013 driving improvement training programme for MMTL drivers. He was answering a question on how the new management of the MMTL under his leadership would curb corruption within the company and increase the salaries of staff, which had been of concern for the workers and the government over the past months. In June this year, the Daily Graphic published a report which said five employees of the MMTL, including the Western Regional Manager, Mr Lawrence Fianu, had allegedly embezzled more than GH�2.5 million belonging to the company. The company denied the report and stated that the amount stolen was GH�4,800 and that the culprits had been dismissed and denied their entitlements. The MMTL was established in October 2003 with the Government of Ghana holding 45 per cent shares while private investors owned the remaining 55 per cent shares. However, legally, the MMTL is a private company that is expected to meet the needs of the public and operate an affordable transport system in an economically sustainable way. Mr Appiah said the workers would be taken through human resource training programmes for them to appreciate the fact that they were part of the organisation and as such their illegal activities affected its growth. �We all have the moral and civic responsibility to ensure that we support the organisation to live up to its bidding,� he added. He, however, served notice that management would not take it lightly if any staff embezzled money belonging to the company or engaged in any illegal activity that would affect the operations of the organisation. �There are clear-cut internal regulations governing these illegal acts; you will be fired if found guilty,� he stressed. Concerning the salaries of the staff, Mr Appiah said the board had approved 50 per cent increase in salaries, which would be implemented in 2014. He hinted that a programme was being rolled out to rehabilitate 100 buses to add to the existing fleet of 750. �By December, 2013, we would have 850 buses operating in the country to help carry passengers to their various destinations. Launching the programme, the Minister of Transport, Mrs Dzifa Aku Attivor, lauded the organisation for the initiative and advised the workers to drive within the speed limit, and use their seat belts, among other things, adding, �That is the only way to ensure that you arrive alive.� The Executive Director of the National Drivers Academy, Mr Etse Ladzekpo, said the training was to improve the professional capabilities of the drivers and to ensure that they had the correct attitude and behaviour which would lead to a reduction in deaths and injuries on the roads.