Protesters situation president 24-hour ultimatum to ‘reply favourably’ to calls for, threatening ‘all obligatory measures’.
Printed On 3 Oct 2025
Madagascan President Andry Rajoelina has ignored requires his resignation by a nationwide youth-led protest motion, condemning what he perceives to be a coup plot pushed by rivals.
Protesters took to the streets of the capital, Antananarivo, on Friday after a “strategic” pause within the near-daily demonstrations led by a motion often known as “Gen Z”, which has demanded the president’s resignation over his alleged failure to ship primary companies, together with water and electrical energy.
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Not less than 22 individuals have been killed because the protests began on September 25, in response to the United Nations. On Friday, police fired tear fuel to disperse marchers within the capital, footage from Actual TV Madagasikara confirmed.
“Nobody advantages from the destruction of the nation. I’m right here, I stand right here able to hear, prepared to increase a serving to hand and … to carry options to Madagascar,” Rajoelina stated in a speech broadcast on his Fb web page.
He stated, with out offering proof, that some politicians have been plotting to reap the benefits of the protests and had thought-about staging a coup whereas he was addressing the United Nations in New York final week.
“What I need to let you know is that some individuals need to destroy our nation,” he stated, with out naming these he alleged have been behind the transfer.
The Gen Z motion rejected Rajoelina’s speech as “mindless”, promising to take “all obligatory measures” if the president didn’t “reply favourably” inside 24 hours to its calls for.
There have been additionally protests within the northern coastal metropolis of Mahajanga and within the southern cities of Toliara and Fianarantsoa.
‘Opportunistic teams’
Madagascar is wealthy in assets but stays one of many world’s poorest international locations, with 75 p.c of its inhabitants of 32 million dwelling under the poverty line in 2022, in response to the World Financial institution.
The latest unrest pressured Rajoelina to sack his government on Monday and invite dialogue. In a submit on his X account on the finish of the week, he stated he had additionally met varied teams for the previous three days to debate the state of affairs.
Madagascar’s International Minister Rasata Rafaravavitafika stated the nation confronted “a large cyberattack” and a “focused digital manipulation marketing campaign” launched from one other nation.
“In accordance with analyses by our specialised items, this operation was initially directed from overseas by an company with superior technological capabilities,” she stated.
She claimed that “opportunistic teams” had “infiltrated” the protests and aimed to “exploit the vulnerability of a few of Madagascar’s younger individuals”.
Rajoelina, the previous mayor of Antananarivo, first got here to energy in 2009 following a coup sparked by an rebellion that deposed former President Marc Ravalomanana.
After sitting out the 2013 election beneath worldwide stress, he was voted again into workplace in 2018 and re-elected in 2023.
