Asaba – December 12, 2025 – The Director-General of the Delta State Traffic Management Authority (DESTMA), Hon. Benjamin Okiemute, on Thursday marked his first anniversary in office with an impressive scorecard that has transformed a once-moribund agency into a disciplined, responsive, and highly effective traffic management outfit. Addressing journalists at a well-attended press conference at DESTMA headquarters in Asaba, Okiemute detailed a year of sweeping reforms that have restored pride, professionalism, and operational capacity to an authority many had written off as ineffective.
When Hon. Okiemute assumed office in December 2024, DESTMA was in near-total collapse. There had been no substantive Director-General for an extended period, leaving the agency under the loose supervision of directors from the Ministry of Transport. Only two barely functional patrol vehicles and one tow truck served the entire state. Key zones such as Agbor, Sapele, Ughelli, Kwale, and Ozoro had zero operational vehicles. Most of the fleet was “rickety and permanently parked in mechanic workshops,” officers’ morale was at rock bottom, uniform standards had collapsed, and public perception of the agency had hit an all-time low.
Within weeks, Okiemute, working closely with the Board Chairman, board members, and senior directors, rolled out an aggressive revival plan built on three pillars: rehabilitation of assets, restructuring of personnel, and reorientation of the public. Abandoned vehicles were towed to workshops, refurbished, and redeployed to long-neglected zones. New units were created, including the DESTMA Provost Unit for internal discipline, an Intelligence Unit for real-time monitoring, and the DESTMA Marshals for rapid-response operations. A dedicated Sienna vehicle was procured exclusively for the Provost Unit to respond swiftly to attacks on officers or serious disciplinary breaches.
The results have been nothing short of remarkable. Between December 2024 and December 2025, DESTMA impounded 4,328 vehicles for various traffic offences, with over 100 cases prosecuted through the transparent mobile court system. Yet Okiemute repeatedly stressed that enforcement is a last resort. “Our primary mandate is education, not punishment,” he told journalists. The agency now runs a fully functional Traffic School where offenders are sensitised rather than automatically fined. “If we had fined every offender, we would have generated close to one billion naira,” he revealed, “but our goal is to build a culture of voluntary compliance, not to turn DESTMA into a revenue machine.”
Even with this education-first approach, DESTMA recorded an astonishing ₦110,885,500 in revenue — a 273% increase over the previous year. The DG attributed the leap to transparent systems, digital tracking of fines, and vastly improved enforcement coverage rather than extortion.
On the roads, the impact is visible to every motorist. Traffic flow along major corridors in Asaba, Warri, Effurun, Ughelli, and Sapele has improved dramatically. Gridlocks that used to last hours now clear faster, man-hour losses have reduced, and accident rates have dropped noticeably. Collaboration with the Nigeria Police, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), and Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) has been strengthened, especially during emergencies on federal highways passing through the state.
Internally, a comprehensive staff audit ordered by the State Civil Service Commission eliminated ghost workers and provided an accurate headcount for future recruitment. Zonal offices, impound yards, and operational halls have undergone extensive renovation. A new quarter-guard stand now proudly flies both the DESTMA and Delta State flags at headquarters. Officers appear smarter in crisp uniforms, routine Monday and Thursday prayer sessions have boosted morale, and a whistle-blower line (09052598510) received and resolved 45 public complaints within the year.
Okiemute announced that a bill to amend the DESTMA law has been drafted and forwarded to the State House of Assembly. The proposed amendments will grant stronger enforcement powers and transition the agency from a civil-service structure into a proper paramilitary organisation with better welfare, training, and operational autonomy. He also disclosed that proposals for significantly increased budgetary allocation in 2026 have been submitted to sustain the momentum.
Clarifying jurisdictional boundaries that have long caused confusion, the DG reiterated: “DESTMA does not check vehicle particulars — that is VIO’s job. We do not patrol federal highways — that is FRSC’s mandate. Our focus is traffic management and road safety within Delta State. Any officer demanding papers beyond a driver’s licence for identification is acting illegally and will be sanctioned.”
Looking ahead, Okiemute revealed plans for even closer synergy with FRSC to tackle perennial congestion around the Asaba-Benin corridor, especially during the festive season when millions transit between western, eastern, and northern Nigeria.
In a heartfelt closing, Hon. Benjamin Okiemute poured encomiums on Governor Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori for the unwavering political will, funding, and confidence that made the transformation possible. “This success story belongs to His Excellency,” he said. “He found DESTMA in a moribund state and gave us everything we asked for to bring it back to life. Today, Delta roads are safer, freer, and more orderly because of his M.O.R.E. Agenda.”
As he stepped away from the podium, it was clear that in just 365 days, Hon. Okiemute has not only revived DESTMA — he has repositioned it as a benchmark of what focused leadership and accountable governance can achieve in Delta State.
