The National People’s Power (NPP), which accused previous governments of ruining Sri Lanka’s economy, has been following the economic policies of those very same old governments—particularly that of former President Ranil Wickremesinghe—since coming to power.
Wickremesinghe asserted that Sri Lanka had no alternative path to recovery other than implementing economic restructuring under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) assistance program. As a result of the Wickremesinghe government implementing the conditions imposed by the IMF to increase state revenue—specifically austerity measures—the public faced severe hardships.
During the 2024 national elections, the NPP promised to renegotiate the agreement with the IMF to alter the conditions that placed the bulk of the economic restructuring burden on ordinary people. However, after coming to power, they were unable to do so. They continue to manage the economy in accordance with the IMF’s conditions. In other words, they are following the economic policies of the Ranil government.
During the Good Governance (Yahapalana) government era, Wickremesinghe introduced a confusing amendment to the Provincial Councils Elections Act, creating a situation where provincial council elections could not be held for several years. Later, while serving as President from 2022 to 2024, he resorted to various manipulative tactics to avoid holding local government elections due to the fear of defeat. He also claimed that the government lacked the funds to conduct those elections.
Wickremesinghe, who went so far as to defy the Supreme Court’s ruling stating that the government could not withhold funds allocated for local government elections, did not hold those elections until the end of his term. He argued that fulfilling the basic economic needs of the people was more important than holding elections.
The NPP government, which seems intent on not holding provincial council elections, has so far been citing the election law as the reason. The government even appointed a Parliamentary Select Committee to determine under which electoral system the provincial council elections should be conducted. It was stated that this select committee would submit its report within three months. Those three months are now coming to an end.
Tilvin Silva, the General Secretary of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)—the core party of the National People’s Power—who visited Jaffna last week, addressed a press conference. He stated that the funds allocated in this year’s budget for conducting provincial council elections were spent by the government to provide immediate relief and undertake rehabilitation projects for the people affected by Cyclone Ditwah in November last year. Consequently, he noted, the possibility of holding provincial council elections can only be considered next year.
At a time when fears are being expressed about the risk of another economic collapse, Tilvin Silva’s statement raises suspicions that the government intends to postpone the provincial council elections for as long as possible, using the financial crisis as an excuse.
The National People’s Power government, which follows the policies adopted by Ranil Wickremesinghe in economic matters, is acting just like him in seeking excuses to postpone elections out of fear that it cannot win. Such is the true nature of their promised “system change” and “new political” culture.”
