• Treasury 5-member committee report submitted to President

Sri Lanka Customs is yet to receive the Ministry of Finance's report on the controversial release of 323 shipping containers earlier this year.

The much-anticipated report, prepared by a five-member committee appointed by the Finance Ministry, was recently submitted to President and Finance Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

As it is reported that the committee report has put forward several recommendations to be implemented by the Sri Lanka Customs, The Daily Morning queried Customs Spokesperson, Additional Director General Seevali Arukgoda said that they're yet to receive the report. "The Customs is yet to receive the report. We can't say anything about recommendations when we haven't received it," Arukgoda added.

The release of the containers, which took place between July 2024 and January 2025, has sparked serious allegations, including claims that proper procedures were ignored and that some containers may have included dangerous items like drugs or weapons. Some complainants have gone as far as alleging political interference and have taken their concerns to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

According to the report, high-risk containers were released without inspection on 13 occasions, between July 2024 and January 2025. The committee states this action, taken to ease congestion, broke away from accepted Customs procedures and legal boundaries. The report warned of possible threats to national security, public health, and State revenue due to the release of these containers without proper checks. It also questioned the effectiveness of the congestion relief effort and raised doubts about the accuracy of the Risk Management System itself.

It directly criticised the Director General of Customs for approving the release without following due process, stating that the powers granted under the Customs Ordinance have been exceeded.

Several recommendations have been made, including an immediate halt to the current container release method used by the internal committee, a full post-audit to calculate losses, and a forensic audit of all containers released under the disputed system. The report also suggested using AI technology to improve container scanning and proposes better information-sharing between importers and Customs to improve transparency.