To defeat Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Sri Lanka’s opposition must first understand the moment they’re in and they don’t. Instead of offering a compelling vision, strong leadership, or coherent coalitions, they’ve become stuck in reactive mode. The real issues confronting Sri Lanka, economic insecurity, corruption, youth unemployment, educational decay, and climate stress, go unanswered by a disoriented opposition that confuses noise for strategy.
This is not blind praise for Dissanayake. The President must urgently overcome his own psychological vulnerabilities, clear out sycophantic advisors, and strengthen governance with competent leadership. If not, his government risks collapsing from the inside, not due to opposition force but self-inflicted failure.
Yet, for now, Dissanayake appears unshakeable. The global landscape is shifting fast, economically and geopolitically and any government must be capable of more than mere survival. If Dissanayake focuses on resilience and reform, he may very well complete his term. The opposition, by contrast, offers no compelling economic plan, no foreign policy direction, and certainly no leader who inspires confidence.
Many within the opposition still fantasize about a Gotabaya-style collapse. But history doesn’t always rhyme. Gotabaya’s fall was unique triggered by deep economic collapse and decades of dynastic failure. Without a similar implosion, Dissanayake’s government won’t fall to angry speeches and social media storms.
At best, the opposition’s playbook is to highlight Dissanayake’s failings, what they call “noble lies” crafted myths to hold political order. But their own silence on vital policy questions is deafening. Where is their roadmap for economic reform? How will they navigate growing tensions between China and India? They have no answers.
Comparative political landscapes reveal more. In Pakistan, Imran Khan’s populism collapsed under institutional instability. In Brazil, Lula didn’t just return because Bolsonaro failed, he had a better vision. Sri Lanka’s opposition has neither vision nor charisma. Instead, they mirror the very failings they claim to oppose.
What Sri Lanka needs is not just a regime change it needs a cultural and cognitive reset. The opposition’s inability to offer this only strengthens Dissanayake’s hand. His grasp on power isn’t because his government is flawless—it’s because the alternative is far worse.
Despite visible cracks in Dissanayake’s camp particularly within the National People’s Power and JVP, the opposition still fails to pose a meaningful threat. The Prime Minister’s gaffes and internal instability don’t change the fact that the cabinet lacks strategic depth, and the opposition lacks moral clarity. The government is filled with yes-men, but the opposition is filled with no-vision.
This is a moment that demands courage and reform. Dissanayake must confront internal rot, remove parasitic loyalists, and rebuild with competence. He must channel Antonio Gramsci’s famous dictum: “Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will.”
The opposition, meanwhile, continues its empty howling, hoping the government will collapse by September. It’s delusion, not strategy. Their leaders, out of touch and lacking credibility, cast themselves as saviors while being anything but.
Even Ranil Wickremesinghe, with all his political skill, should know better than to return as the face of opposition. Instead, he must help foster a new generation of leaders who can reform from the inside out. Because as the article reminds us: “A decaying tree cannot yield sound fruit.”
Ultimately, the opposition is trapped in a cycle of defeat, a “habitus of defeat,” as sociologist Pierre Bourdieu called it. Lacking ideological depth, policy direction, and public trust, they remain unequipped to mount a serious challenge.
Yes, Dissanayake’s psychological strain is evident his restlessness betrays the weight of the challenges he faces. But his rare bond of trust with the public, grounded in years of grassroots engagement, still holds. In a political era defined by collapsing credibility, that trust is his strongest weapon and the opposition’s greatest weakness.
SOURCE :- SRI LANKA GUARDIAN
