An internal directive from earlier in the week had ordered JMPD officers to only use vehicles for essential purposes.
Picture: File / The Citizen
The fuel crisis at the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) has been resolved, according to the city’s mayor Dada Morero.
A leaked internal directive signed off on Wednesday ordered JMPD officers to limit vehicle use to essential operational purposes only.
JMPD confirmed the directive had been retracted as of Thursday, with the mayor stating on Friday that the matter had been resolved.
Morero claimed the refuelling challenges were caused by administrative issues in a transition between service providers.
The municipality added that no JMPD services were disrupted and no vehicles were grounded due to fuel shortages.
‘The contract is in place’
The internal directive had stated that the refuelling challenges were due to the non-payment of fuel cards and the ending of lines of credit.
“The service stations that had been providing interim refuelling assistance have since withdrawn their support after reaching the credit limits extended to the department,” the directive dated 21 October stated.
However, Morero said that JMPD’s problems were down to service provider alignements that had since been resolved.
“[This was] the result of the contractual issues moving from one service provider to a new service provider, which impacted on an inability of our petrol cards to be able to function and support JMPD employees in the execution of their duties.
“The contract is in place and we are happy to announce that we are moving forward and all our vehicles and all our petrol cards are functioning,” the mayor said.
WATCH: Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero explains JMPD’s fuel challenges
JMPD work ‘never interrupted’
The municipality elaborated on the issue in a separate statement on Friday.
“Such transitions can present challenges relating to the transfer and verification of account information, the alignment of contractual obligations, the activation of new service arrangements, the reconciliation of outstanding transactions and the establishment of appropriate payment processes.
“Where services are operationally critical, these processes must be coordinated effectively to mitigate potential risks and safeguard service delivery,” the municipality stated.
The municipality was adamant that there were no disruptions to JMPD operations due to fuel shortages.
“JMPD services were never interrupted, and no vehicles were grounded at any point. The department proactively managed and optimally utilised the fuel available on board to ensure uninterrupted operations,” the municipality concluded.
