On Wednesday, the President of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, made the announcement that he would be running for re-election in November. Rajoelina made the announcement during a lavish event that took place in the biggest stadium on the sizable island in the Indian Ocean, which will hold presidential elections on November 9.
In 2009, he initially seized power as a result of a coup that resulted in the removal of the previous president, Marc Ravalomanana. Rajoelina was voted back into power in 2018 after deciding not to run for office in 2013 in response to criticism from the international community. “Are you all set? I have made up my mind,” the president, who is 49 years old, stated in the capital city of Antananarivo. He stated he was ready to represent people “throughout Madagascar and to be the president of all Malagasy people while wearing a white suit. He also added that he was ready to be president.
On a stage adorned with banners bearing his image and with big screens that hosted evangelical music groups and popular Malagasy singers before he gave his address, he stated, “The Constitution allows me to run for a second term. This was uttered while he was standing on the podium.
Rajoelina emphasized the infrastructure that has been constructed over the course of the previous five years while speaking in front of thousands of fans who were wearing the orange and white party colors at the Barea stadium. At the end of August, a stampede at the same venue claimed the lives of twelve people.
After declaring himself to be a “builder president,” he proceeded to list the various institutions, including schools, courts, and even jails, that had been constructed during his administration. Rajoelina assured the audience that she would prevail by stating, “Many things have been done to prevent me from moving forward, but this encourages me to do more.”
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In the most recent few months, the head of state has been the subject of speculation over his dual citizenship with France. At the end of June, the information was made public through various sources in the media. Naturalized in France in 2014, the president of Madagascar would be disqualified from holding Madagascan citizenship under the rules of the local legislation.
Because he does not have Malagasy nationality, he is unable to run for office or lead Madagascar in any capacity. The party that is currently in power, however, is vehemently disputing this interpretation of the events. The businessman and devout Catholic first appeared on the Malagasy political arena in 2007, earning the nick tag “TGV” in allusion to the name of his political party, Tanora malaGasy Vonona (Young Malagasies Determined).
In that year, he won the election for mayor of Antananarivo’s capital city with a decisive victory over the party of the country’s previous president, Ravalomanana. In 2009, he successfully ousted Ravalomanana from power while enjoying the tacit backing of the armed forces. Members of the international community denounced the coup d’état.
Ravalomanana, a 73-year-old millionaire who built his money in the agri-food sector, has not yet accepted the fact that he was removed from office, and he declared his intention to run for president in July of this year. He made his fortune in the agri-food industry.
The island nation of Madagascar, which is frequently subjected to calamitous storms despite having a large amount of natural resources, is considered one of the poorest countries in the world. There are around 28 million people in this country, and almost 80 percent of them live on less than 1.92 dollars each day.
