₦airaland Forum

The youths demand Rajoelina to apologise and then resign

Madagascar’s president, Andry Rajoelina, said he had fled the country in fear for his life after a military rebellion but did not announce his resignation in a speech broadcast on social media late on Monday from an undisclosed location.

The 51-year-old has faced weeks of gen Z-led anti-government protests, which reached a pivotal point on Saturday when an elite military unit joined the protests and called for the president and other ministers to step down. That prompted Rajoelina to say that an illegal attempt to seize power was under way in the Indian Ocean island and leave the country.

“I was forced to find a safe place to protect my life,” Rajoelina said in his late-night speech, which was also meant to be shown on Madagascar television but was delayed for hours after soldiers attempted to take control of the state broadcaster buildings, according to the president’s office.

The speech was ultimately broadcast on the presidency’s official Facebook page but not on national TV.

They were Rajoelina’s first public comments since the Capsat military unit turned against his government in an apparent coup and joined thousands of protesters rallying in a main square in the capital, Antananarivo, over the weekend.

Rajoelina called for dialogue “to find a way out of this situation” and said the constitution should be respected. He did not say how he left Madagascar or where he was, but a report claimed he was flown out of the country on a French military plane. A French foreign ministry spokesperson declined to comment on that report.

Rajoelina was first president from 2009 to 2014 before returning to power in 2023. He was increasingly isolated after losing the support of a key army unit that joined thousands of youths activists known as “Gen Z Madagascar” to protest against corruption and poverty. The movement had earlier turned down an invitation to meet him for dialogue and demanded his resignation.

People flooded a square in front of the Antananarivo city hall on Monday, waving flags and chanting slogans, some hanging off military vehicles as they arrived, according to Agence France-Presse reporters.

Among the demonstrators were soldiers from the elite Capsat unit, which played a major role in the 2009 coup during Rajoelina’s rise to the presidency after mass protests forced his predecessor Marc Ravalomanana out of power.

Also present were gendarmerie officers, accused of using heavy-handed tactics during the near-daily protests over more than two weeks. They admitted in a video statement to “faults and excesses” in their response.

At least 22 people were killed in the first days by security forces and others in violence sparked by criminal gangs and looters, according to the UN. But Rajoelina had disputed the toll, saying last week there were “12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals”.

On Saturday, some Capsat soldiers posted a video to social media saying: “Let us join forces, military, gendarmes and police, and refuse to be paid to shoot our friends, our brothers and our sisters.”

“Close the gates, and await our instructions,” they added. “Do not obey orders from your superiors. Point your weapons at those who order you to fire on your comrades in arms because they will not take care of our families if we die.”

The showdown began following the arrest of two politicians on 19 September after planning a protest against the country’s chronic power and water outages.

SOURCE

Previous Thread:
https://www.nairaland.com/8538197/madagascar-rajoelina-warns-against-coup

Nigeria military is not that gallant.

E don red for that side, more to follow.....40 more words

Pes it don’t thing come back

nigerian youth are just consumed by tiktok and cruise

Probably because of my dad

Orlandoo:
Nigeria military is not that gallant.

We're not going to that part again.

We're going to solve our issue politically

It's time you kids get used to it

Oppressing people against their wish is very bad,those in govt should know that.

Good! Great feat by the youth. This is the power of resilience. There is no difference between the democratic tyrants most third world countries have and the military regimes.

Nigerian youths are on TikTok and watching fb videos while politicians are playing their future away.

That is next thing to do. Foolishness is when your next option is to run to lawyer

Military government go worse pass civilian government... They are jst civilians dressed in uniforms....

E go soon happen in Nigeria too, just that Nigerian military still dey sleep, even citizens don sleep. Stupid APC supporters that are so poor still dey form die hard on top empty stomach.

NOTE: if you are rich and comfortable you can keep supporting the evil party but I have problems with the poor supporters of APC. You just decided to keep supporting evil without sense.

Nigerian army....over to u ... the APC lead government have allowed criminals kill u and they end up releasing these criminals back to the street .. while ur family suffer in poverty cos they will never take care of them...they chase them out of barracks after ur burial and forget them....ur children will turn to street urchins while ur wife might turn to street beggar ...just because u tried to defend ur country

greatman247:
E go soon happen in Nigeria too, just that Nigerian military still sey sleep

Says who, with this current docile citizens

Cameroon on my mind right now. Paul Biya should be given the same treatment for the good of Cameroonians.

Kudos to Madagascar Patriotic Soldiers Unlike The Amala Zombie Soldiers We Have Here in this Shit Hole,

Judolisco:
Military government go worse pass civilian government... They are jst civilians dressed in uniforms....

That's the scare you guys are always using because you don't want such to happen in Nigeria because of supremacist ideology, I have lived in both type of governments, with the current state of Nigeria, the military governments I experienced were all better...

One day..,.Fela Anikulapo Kuti of blessed memory prophecy shall come to pass...

Dammnnnn

This is the power of collectiveness. why is it that African leaders don't usually want to let go of power, once they taste it?

Abbeytoy:
We're not going to that part again.

We're going to solve our issue politically

It's time you kids get used to it

"We shouldn't go that way again"
Not "we are not going that way again"

You are not the whole Nigeria.

Calm down.

It's coming home. 1 million Bible protest. On God.

Orlandoo:
Nigeria military is not that gallant.

We were more bloody in the 1950s/1970s but now everyone dey find money

The Nigeria Army is the Epitome of Deep-seated Corruption. They Can Never Be Sensitive & Reasonable Enough to Do The Needful

Pootle:
nigerian youth are just consumed by tiktok and cruise

You will never get this kind of revolution if the military choose the corrupt government over the oppressed citizens.

fergie001:
Rajoelina called for dialogue “to find a way out of this situation” and said the constitution should be respected. He did not say how he left Madagascar or where he was, but a report claimed he was flown out of the country on a French military plane. A French foreign ministry spokesperson declined to comment on that report.

French military plane? I thought the Russians were backing him when he was taking over the country? When it's the turn of those Putin-loving fancy dressers in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger tomorrow, I'm sure they too will seek French military planes to run away.

It can never happen in Nigeria cos Nigerians are so divided to achieve anything

Osondu agwuike, e don run!😂

Gen z no want hear word, like Nepal, like Madagascar....

No be play Genz get mind o, if you see Gen Z yahoo boys ehn, them dey beat up ladies of 35 yrs old they are dating

I don't pray for such in Nigeria!!
Cos e go worst

I expect the government to sit and don't wait for such to happen