News
Thousands of containers held up amid Customs grievances
View(s):By Dilushi Wijesinghe
Long lines of container trucks stretched along the approach roads to the Port of Colombo this week, as clearing agents and drivers waited for consignments to be released, raising concerns over possible disruptions at the country’s main maritime gateway.
The sight of stationary trailers spilling onto adjoining roads fuelled speculation that industrial action by Customs officers had slowed operations. However, senior officials insisted the congestion was part of a routine weekly cycle rather than the result of any strike.
Customs Director General Seevali Arukgoda told the Sunday Times that the volume of containers cleared for release typically rises towards the latter half of the week.
“The documentation process begins on Monday, but both internal processing and the submission of documents by importers take time. By the time the majority of containers are ready for examination and clearance, it is usually Wednesday,” he explained.
Accordingly, the highest number of containers is processed between Wednesday and Friday, often resulting in temporary build-ups along access roads.
“This is a routine situation. It varies depending on the season and the volume of imports, but there is nothing unusual about the increase toward the end of the week,” Mr Arukgoda said.
The clarification follows concerns that the delays may have been linked to trade union action by Customs officers earlier in the week. No services were disrupted during the trade union action, authorities maintained.
At the centre of the dispute are long-standing grievances over promotions and the implementation of the department’s Scheme of Recruitment (SoR).
The Director General acknowledged delays in granting promotions, attributing them to procedural complexities and the involvement of multiple state institutions, including the Ministry of Finance and the Public Services Commission.
“The promotions process is not handled by the department alone. Each officer’s file has to be reviewed and updated, applications have to be called, and approvals obtained. It is a complicated process involving several agencies,” the DG said.
Irregular recruitment in previous years had also contributed to the current impasse, he noted, explaining that the absence of consistent intake had disrupted the promotional structure within the department.
“We cannot fill operational vacancies merely by granting promotions. Recruitment gaps have had an impact,” he said.
Issues relating to the SoR are currently being addressed in consultation with the Public Services Commission, he added, expressing confidence that discussions among all stakeholders would yield an amicable resolution.
“All stakeholders including the Ministry of Finance, the Customs Department and the Public Services Commission are working together to resolve the remaining issues,” Mr Arukgoda said.
Meanwhile, a high-level meeting was convened on Thursday, February 26, at the Finance Ministry, chaired by Deputy Finance Minister Anil Jayantha and attended by Deputy Minister of Economic Development Nishantha Jayaweera, President’s Secretary Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Treasury Secretary Dr Harshana Suriyapperuma, senior Finance Ministry officials, the Secretary of the Public Services Commission, the Director General of Customs and representatives of the department’s Human Resources Division and three trade unions – the Customs Officers’ Union, the Senior Superintendent of Customs Union and the Customs Staff Officers Union.
Joint Secretary of the Customs Officers’ Union, Ravinatha Aluthge said the primary issue raised at the meeting was the failure to properly implement the SoR, which had been scheduled to come into effect in February 2020.
“Our request was to implement it with immediate effect. It was implemented only gradually until 2024. There were also delays in issuing written documents, and various excuses were given by the Customs management for the slow process, but we were not given an opportunity for discussion,” he said.
“Some promotions were granted, but not at the proper time, although there were vacancies. There were posts available, but no officers were appointed to fill them.
“The Customs HR Division sent a letter to the Public Service Commission in 2024 informing it of the vacancies in our department, but a response was received only this year. However, the vacancies listed had accumulated since 2021. The approval that came in 2026 was backdated only until 2023, not 2021. The officers who served in acting positions during that period have not been treated fairly, as their service has not been recognised,” he alleged.
According to Mr Aluthge, a unanimous conclusion was reached at the meeting that the officers who had served in acting capacities should be compensated for the period during which they performed those duties.“They should be compensated from the day the vacancy was created and from the day they began serving in that position,” he said.
He added that the Treasury Secretary had instructed the Director General of Customs to complete the relevant preliminary work within one week and to submit in writing the names of the officers who had served in acting positions from the date the vacancies arose.
“The HR Division also admitted that it bore some responsibility for the delay in the process.
“We informed the Treasury Secretary that we had been engaged in trade union action since Monday, February 23, and that we required a written response. On February 27, we received a letter stating that he would intervene to resolve the matter soon. As a result, we have temporarily called off our black armband protest. We sincerely hope that this issue will be resolved soon.
“We are not asking for a salary increase. On February 13, 2020, certain promotions were approved but not granted. We continued to work in the hope that they would be implemented, but they were not. We are only asking for what was approved,” he said.
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