By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Madagascar’s presidency on Sunday raised concern that an attempt to grab power by force was underway in the African nation as more soldiers joined a youth-led protest seeking the immediate resignation of President Andry Rajoelina.
In a statement on the presidency’s official social media account, Rajoelina’s office said “an attempted illegal and forcible seizure of power” was underway, adding that the president had urged “dialogue to resolve the crisis”.
Rajoelina’s whereabouts were unknown on Sunday, but late on Saturday his office said he and the prime minister were “fully in control of the nation’s affairs”.
In the last two weeks, deadly demonstrations have rocked the former French colony facing shortage of water and epileptic power supply.
Troops from the elite CAPSAT unit, which helped President Rajoelina seize power in a 2009 coup, urged fellow soldiers to disobey orders on Saturday and back the youth-led protests, which began on September 25.
It has posed the most serious challenge to Rajoelina’s administration since his re-election in 2023.
CAPSAT officers said on Sunday they had command over the country’s security operations and would coordinate all branches of the military from their base on the outskirts of the capital, Antananarivo.
They said they had appointed General Demosthene Pikulas as head of the army.
A unit of the paramilitary gendarmerie, which had so far tackled the protests together with the police, also broke ranks with the government on Sunday.
“All use of force and any improper behaviour towards our fellow citizens are prohibited, as the gendarmerie is a force meant to protect people and not to defend the interests of a few individuals,” the Intervention Forces of the National Gendarmerie said in a statement broadcast on Real TV. It said it was coordinating with the CAPSAT headquarters.
The Gen Z-led protests have since spread beyond demand for provision of water and electricity to call for the President to step down and apologize over violence against protesters, dissolve the Senate and electoral commission.
