On Monday, Madagascar’s new head of state appointed a civilian prime minister after a military takeover ousted ex-president Andry Rajoelina.
Army Colonel Michael Randrianirina, who declared on Tuesday that the military assumed control following Rajoelina’s impeachment due to abandonment of duties amid protests, was inaugurated as president on Friday.
Randrianirina vowed significant reforms and new elections in the impoverished island nation, where last month’s protests against persistent power outages quickly grew into a large anti-government movement.
After consulting the national assembly, Randrianirina appointed Herintsalama Rajaonarivelo, a private sector leader and former BNI bank chairman, as the new prime minister on Monday.
Randrianirina noted that Rajaonarivelo possesses “the expertise, experience, and international organizational connections necessary to collaborate with Madagascar.”
The new president has committed to forming a civilian government and working with “all national forces” following the military’s rise to power, denying last week’s coup accusations.
On Monday, he stated the prime minister’s selection “strictly adhered to the Constitution.”
Randrianirina led the CAPSAT military unit that mutinied on October 11, protesting violence against anti-government demonstrators by Rajoelina’s security forces and joining the protests in Antananarivo.
This was a pivotal moment in the uprising, causing Rajoelina to leave the country.
Media reports indicated the former president was evacuated on Sunday via a French military plane to Reunion island, then traveled to Dubai.
Rajoelina’s supporters have denounced the power seizure, which the constitutional court supported.
