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Johannesburg metro police fuel cards work again after bank change

Published

The City of Johannesburg's mayor's office said the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) fuel card problem is resolved and the cards are in use at petrol stations. The disruption had threatened to take patrol vehicles off the streets.

Mayoral spokesperson Khathutshelo Mulaudzi linked the disruption to the city's move from one banking service provider to another. He said this briefly affected payment processing. He also said the city and the service provider agreed on the way forward, including payments.

An internal JMPD notice issued late on Thursday said the cards were unblocked. Fuel-saving measures remain in place. Mulaudzi said the city is working to complete the processing of payments affected by the transition.

JMPD chief of police Patrick Jaca said the fuel shortages posed a significant risk to operational continuity. He said some petrol stations withdrew support or capped JMPD accounts over unpaid bills.

Key facts

Who
Patrick Jaca (Chief of police, JMPD); Khathutshelo Mulaudzi (Mayoral spokesperson); Dada Morero (Executive mayor of Johannesburg); Johannesburg Metro Police Department (Metro police department whose fuel cards were blocked)
What
The City of Johannesburg's mayor's office said the JMPD fuel card problem, which threatened to reduce patrol vehicles on the streets, is resolved after an internal notice said the cards were unblocked following a disruption linked to a change of banking service provider. Fuel-saving measures remain in place.
When
22 October 2026
Where
Johannesburg
Status
Reported

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