Madagascar’s presidency says an attempt to seize power is underway

The office of Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina said that an attempt to illegally and unconstitutionally seize power is taking place in the country.

Hours later, a military unit known as CAPSAT claimed to have taken command of the military command, and that it now controlled all armed forces – land, air and sea.

This is the same unit that played a crucial role in the 2009 Malagasy political crisis, which helped Rajoelina come to power.

Madagascar was first hit by protests on September 25 against water and electricity outages, but they escalated to reflect broader dissatisfaction with Rajoelina’s government due to high rates of unemployment, corruption, and the cost of living crisis.

Rajoelina’s statement said, “There is an attempt to seize power at this time on the territory of the Republic, in complete violation of the Constitution and democratic principles,” translated.

He condemned “in the strongest possible terms” what he described as an attempt to destabilize the country. He also called on all major forces in the country to unite to defend the constitutional order and national sovereignty.

Kapsat said it had appointed a new chief of staff, General Demosthenes Pikula, according to a statement on its Facebook page.

On Sunday morning, there were reports of a shooting at the Kabsat camp after Gendarmerie officials visited it for discussions. No other details about the accident emerged.

On Saturday, some soldiers left their barracks on the outskirts of the capital, Antananarivo, to join the demonstrators in front of the city’s municipal building.

CAPSAT has been condemned Use of force By security forces in dealing with recent protests in Antananarivo.

On Saturday, a statement from the presidency assured the nation that Rajoelina and the new prime minister – an army general appointed last week – had the situation under control.