THE government is “clinically dead”, declared Delo, a Slovenian daily, on January 15th. The question is how long it can last in this state. Some say Janez Jansa, the prime minister, will step down within days; others expect him to cling on. His office dismisses talk of resignation. Yet Tomaz Saunik, a political analyst, concludes that “one way or another, he will fall”.

Since November Slovenia has sizzled with protests. On January 8th the official anti-corruption commission dropped a bombshell by saying that Mr Jansa and Zoran Jankovic, leader of the largest parliamentary party, which is in opposition, had questions to answer. Both men, said the commission, “systematically and repeatedly violated the law” by failing to report their assets. Mr Jansa, already on trial for corruption, should say how he came by more than €200,000 ($265,000) of “unknown origin”. Mr Jankovic, who is also mayor of Ljubljana, should explain relations between firms owned by his sons, companies doing business with the city and cash transferred to his private account. On January 11th, 10,000 protesters took to the streets in Ljubljana: a big number in a country of only 2m.

What will happen next? Three of Mr Jansa’s coalition partners have demanded that he step down. Yet the prime minister denies the allegations. His party blames an opposition conspiracy. He could cling on, despite protests and a general strike due on January 23rd. He could hand the job to somebody else. He may lose a no-confidence vote or he might call a new election. Or he may suggest a technocratic government. Mr Jankovic also insists he is “not a crook”, but his own support is melting away. That makes it unlikely that his party could help form a new coalition.

The economy is in dire straits. GDP may have shrunk by 2.4% in 2012 and will fall by another 1.4% this year. Unemployment is 12%. Slovenia may need a bail-out from its euro-zone partners. Educated locals no longer see much future at home. What has shaken Slovenes out of their cocoon, says Bostjan Videmsek, who edits Delo’s “alternative” Slovenia section website, is a feeling that the country has become a “small Russia, without natural resources but with oligarchs”.

The neighbouring Croats are alarmed. Croatia is due to join the European Union on July 1st. But it must settle a banking dispute with Slovenia before the Slovenes can ask their parliament to ratify Croatia’s accession. If the government collapses and a new election is called, the July 1st target may be missed.