President Popular in North Despite Unfulfilled Promises
Photo courtesy of Raj Sivanathan
The recent visit to Jaffna by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has stirred an unusual political mood in the Northern Province. Unlike the guarded receptions accorded to previous presidents, this visit generated visible public warmth heightened media attention and a notable surge of interest among young people particularly young women. This response raises a compelling question: why is President Dissanayake gaining popularity in the North despite limited policy delivery and what does this mean for the future of the region?
For decades presidential visits to Jaffna have been met with restraint scepticism or quiet indifference. Leaders such as Mahinda Rajapaksa Maithripala Sirisena Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived with heavy security scripted programmes and predictable political messaging. To many Northerners, these visits symbolised authority rather than empathy presence rather than partnership. President Dissanayake’s visit felt different not because of policy announcements but because of presentation. His informal engagement unembellished language and absence of overt triumphalism projected a sense of normalcy long missing from Northern political interactions. This stylistic shift alone marked a clear departure from the past.
Perhaps the most striking outcome of Anura’s Jaffna visit has been his resonance with youth. In a region where young people are disillusioned with Tamil party politics and deeply cynical about the state, President Dissanayake appears to occupy a rare middle ground national yet approachable ideological yet human. Among young women in particular his calm confidence modest appearance and controlled oratory have generated a fascination more commonly associated with South Indian political figures who command mass appeal through personality rather than policy alone. Social media has amplified this attraction transforming political engagement into something personal emotional and aspirational. This is not traditional ideological alignment. It is perception driven politics where emotional connection precedes performance.
What makes this moment politically significant is that Anura’s popularity is rising even as key manifesto promises remain unfulfilled. Structural economic reform cost of living relief systemic anticorruption mechanisms and institutional restructuring have progressed slowly or remain incomplete. Yet public patience appears unusually generous. This reflects a deeper transformation in Sri Lankan political psychology. After decades of betrayal voters especially youth are responding less to immediate outcomes and more to perceived honesty intent and direction. In a political culture poisoned by corruption and ethnic manipulation sincerity itself has become political capital. However sincerity without execution is a fragile foundation.
For the Northern Province this moment carries both opportunity and risk. On the positive side Anura’s acceptance in Jaffna could recalibrate the relationship between the North and the centre moving away from ethnic bargaining towards policy driven national inclusion. It opens the possibility of integrating Northern economic and social priorities into a broader reform framework rather than isolating them as minority grievances.
But history urges caution. The North has witnessed many leaders arrive with warmth and depart without change. Charisma does not resolve land disputes. Popularity does not create jobs. Symbolic visits do not substitute for devolution accountability or sustained private investment.
President Dissanayake’s Jaffna visit represents a rare political moment. His growing appeal among youth, including young women, reflects a deep hunger for authenticity in a country exhausted by performative politics. Whether this moment becomes a turning point or another illusion will depend entirely on what follows. For Northerners hope is cautiously resurfacing but belief will come only with action.
