Madagascar’s new military ruler, Colonel Michael Randrianirina, on Wednesday said that he would be sworn in as president today, after the African Union suspended the membership of the nation following a coup to oust Andry Rajoelina as president.
Rajoelina, whom lawmakers impeached after he fled abroad at the weekend, has condemned the takeover and refused to step down despite protests asking him to quit and widespread defections in the security forces.
Randrianirina said in a statement that the Madagascan High Constitutional Court would perform the ceremony.
Photo: AP
“Colonel Michael Randrianirina will be sworn in as the president for the refoundation of the Republic of Madagascar during a formal hearing,” he said.
The African Union on Wednesday announced that the bloc had suspended Madagascar with immediate effect following the coup and called for the restoration of civilian-led governance as well as elections.
Suspension by the 55-member bloc carries political weight and could isolate the new leadership.
Randrianirina said earlier that the military had taken power and dissolved all institutions except the Madagascan National Assembly, the lower house of parliament.
He said that a committee led by the military would rule for up to two years alongside a transitional government before a new elections.
Meanwhile, Rajoelina in a separate statement on Wednesday said that “explicit and extremely serious threats were made against the life of the head of state,” prompting his departure.
The threats had come when he was due to travel abroad for a mission, it said.
Media reports indicated that the 51-year-old leader was evacuated on Sunday aboard a French military plane.
On Monday, he said he had taken refuge in a “safe place” without giving further details.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr yesterday vowed that those behind bogus flood control projects would be arrested before Christmas, days after deadly back-to-back typhoons left swathes of the country underwater. Scores of construction firm owners, government officials and lawmakers — including Marcos’ cousin congressman — have been accused of pocketing funds for substandard or so-called “ghost” infrastructure projects. The Philippine Department of Finance has estimated the nation’s economy lost up to 118.5 billion pesos (US$2 billion) since 2023 due to corruption in flood control projects. Criminal cases against most of the people implicated are nearly complete, Marcos told reporters. “We don’t file cases for
Ecuadorans are today to vote on whether to allow the return of foreign military bases and the drafting of a new constitution that could give the country’s president more power. Voters are to decide on the presence of foreign military bases, which have been banned on Ecuadoran soil since 2008. A “yes” vote would likely bring the return of the US military to the Manta air base on the Pacific coast — once a hub for US anti-drug operations. Other questions concern ending public funding for political parties, reducing the number of lawmakers and creating an elected body that would
OUTRAGE: The former strongman was accused of corruption and responsibility for the killings of hundreds of thousands of political opponents during his time in office Indonesia yesterday awarded the title of national hero to late president Suharto, provoking outrage from rights groups who said the move was an attempt to whitewash decades of human rights abuses and corruption that took place during his 32 years in power. Suharto was a US ally during the Cold War who presided over decades of authoritarian rule, during which up to 1 million political opponents were killed, until he was toppled by protests in 1998. He was one of 10 people recognized by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in a televised ceremony held at the presidential palace in Jakarta to mark National
‘ATTACK ON CIVILIZATION’: The culture ministry released drawings of six missing statues representing the Roman goddess of Venus, the tallest of which was 40cm Investigators believe that the theft of several ancient statues dating back to the Roman era from Syria’s national museum was likely the work of an individual, not an organized gang, officials said on Wednesday. The National Museum of Damascus was closed after the heist was discovered early on Monday. The museum had reopened in January as the country recovers from a 14-year civil war and the fall of the 54-year al-Assad dynasty last year. On Wednesday, a security vehicle was parked outside the main gate of the museum in central Damascus while security guards stood nearby. People were not allowed in because
RSS