The Colombo courtier: Corporate sycophancy and political power in Sri Lanka

  Sycophancy is insincere, excessive flattery or praise directed towards powerful, wealthy, or influential people, typically used to gain a personal advantage or favour. Essentially, it describes the behaviour of a "bootlicker" or a "toady “someone who constantly agrees with or praises an authority figure just to get a promotion, special treatment, or social status, access information, rather than out of honesty, the “yes-man” attitude

• Political leadership changes, but bootlickers remain the same

By a Special Correspondent

In the theatre of modern governance, the endless line of sycophants waiting outside a politician’s door is frequently populated not by party loyalists, but by business owners, CEOs, industry lobbyists, and prominent corporate executives. This happens when governments change, when business leaders engage with powerful politicians, sycophancy transforms from a simple survival mechanism into a highly calculated corporate strategy. By offering uncritical praise, public endorsements, and financial backing (including bribes), business leaders systematically inflate the egos of lawmakers to secure competitive advantages, regulatory relief, and lucrative state contracts at the cost of a nation.

 In Sri Lanka, the intersection of big business and political power has long driven a culture of calculated flattery. From the colonial-era, elite to modern corporate conglomerates, an endless line of business leaders has masterfully played the role of the courtier. In Colombo's high-stakes political theatre, sycophancy is a primary business strategy used to secure government contracts, tax holidays, monopolies, and favourable regulatory carve-outs for protection at the cost of competition, the poor and the SME.

 By publicly validating whichever administration holds the keys to the state, portions of the private sector intentionally insulate political leaders from economic reality. This dynamic shifts according to who is in power, operating through distinct, well-worn channels. 

Post-election pivot

Sri Lankan corporate history is defined by the rapid "post-election pivot." Business tycoons who heavily financed or publicly praised an outgoing regime are frequently the first to line up at the Presidential Secretariat or Temple Trees to garland the newly elected leadership. Overnight, yesterday’s "visionary leader" is forgotten, and the new incumbent is hailed as the nation's true economic saviour. This public display of loyalty is rarely driven by ideology; it is a defensive manoeuvre to protect existing investments and ensure continuous access to state patronage and closing the doors to the masses. 

The 'national development' façade - not entrepreneurs

By presenting a face of patriotic alignment with the government's "national vision," executives build personal capital, positions with key lawmakers, infiltrate into Government boards, advisory capacities and most of the time in conflicting roles collecting information and fix tenders in their favour. Corporations frequently align their corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects or major commercial investments with a politician’s personal vanity projects. Business leaders use these initiatives as tributes. Truly they are predators. Not entrepreneurs but tenderpreneurs and commission wheeler dealers. 

Silent compliance and economic blind spots

When appointed to state-backed economic advisory councils, boards or trade institutions, prominent business leaders frequently choose silent compliance over rigorous dissent. During critical moments in Sri Lanka’s economic history—such as the policy decisions leading up to the 2022 economic crisis—many corporate voices remained publicly quiet or complimentary, fearing that vocal criticism would result in state retaliation, sudden tax audits, or the loss of licences. A classic case was the Gotabaya Rajapakse tax reductions in 2019 which led to the collapse of the economy. The business leaders and their chambers not only kept silent but issued statements glorifying the step towards the island’s disaster to keep the boss happy. This transactional silence creates an echo chamber where politicians genuinely believe their economic management is flawless because the country's wealthiest individuals refuse to tell them otherwise. But the funny thing is the same people are appointed to positions by every government as advisors and awarded leadership positions.

 The cost of this symbiotic relationship is ultimately borne by ordinary Sri Lankans for generations who fall into poverty and is dismantling once a promising nation into a cesspool. When the line of business leaders outside the halls of power prioritises short-term access and corporate survival over macroeconomic truth, policy errors go uncorrected and the young and able leave the country. The result is a fragile economic landscape where cronyism thrives, market competition is stifled, and governance is shaped by whoever flatters the loudest and throws the money.