Desperate political sandbagging

There is nothing more predictable than surprise in politics. After securing a two-thirds majority in Parliament last year and emerging victorious in most local councils, this year, the JVP-led NPP may have thought that it was plain sailing.

- 

But the government now has many unforeseen, seemingly intractable issues to contend with almost on all fronts. The disaster-stricken economy is expected to slow down, with relief and rebuilding costs escalating, and the deadline for the resumption of debt repayment approaching. Vehicle imports are bound to decrease, causing a sharp drop in the government's tax revenue. The rupee is depreciating fast. As if these were not enough, the government is experiencing serious problems on the political front.

The defeat of the NPP's budget in the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), which the JVP/NPP seized control of through extensive horse trading, could not have come at a worse time for the government. The same fate has befallen many other NPP-controlled local councils. Most of all, the NPP has suffered a string of defeats in the cooperative society elections countrywide during the last several months.