Undelivered post complaints mount as union threatens strike

FRESH complaints were aired this week about undelivered Christmas post, as a trades union threatened to go on strike if “damaging” Post Office staff shortages were not tackled after next month’s general election.

Five weeks after two readers got in touch with Cyprus Today over “outstanding” packages and letters from the UK, Alsancak resident Katie İnkaya said she had received just one out dozens of expected seasonal communications. The Post Office last month advised people to use registered mail for their Christmas post to North Cyprus, to be sure of items arriving — but admitted they were also experiencing delays with tracked parcels.

However the problem was said to be nothing like that of last year, which began in November and peaked over the Christmas and New Year when widespread power cuts, bad weather and other disruption in Turkey were blamed for a backlog that affected both incoming and outgoing mail.

Mrs İnkaya — known to many as singer “Katie B” — recently voiced concern at her local post office, where she has a PO box, after receiving just one envelope out of an expected 70 or so in the pre-Christmas post.

“The one item we got was registered and the others are nowhere to be found,” she said.

“I have never had a problem before with receiving post, but this year we haven’t been getting anything.”

A spokesman for Alsancak’s post office said mail from the UK usually took four to six weeks, but that could depend on the weather in Turkey. He said he was unaware of any problems in North Cyprus, and postmen had been going out every day to make deliveries. Post Office head Sövüda Tabak added: “Whenever there is a problem in Turkey we are informed, but we haven’t been notified about any issues. However we have no idea whether there may be problems in the UK with outgoing mail.

“Sometimes, post that’s meant to be sent to the TRNC goes to the wrong place and that causes delays as it has to be returned where it came from to be re-sent correctly.”

Ktams public sector union chairman Ahmet Kaptan claimed this week the Post Office was grappling with a host of problems because recruitment had stalled since 1989, leaving it with half the staff it should have.

He warned of industrial action including a strike unless the new government after January 7’s election reversed that “neglect” and gave it the priority it deserved.