Madagascar’s political crisis deepened on Tuesday after the National Assembly voted to impeach President Andry Rajoelina for desertion of duty, a move swiftly followed by an announcement from an elite military unit that it had taken control of the country.
The impeachment resolution, which passed with 130 votes in favour out of 163 members, easily surpassed the two-thirds threshold required by the constitution. The presidency, however, dismissed the session as “devoid of any legal basis.”
Moments after the vote, Colonel Michael Randrianirina, head of the elite CAPSAT military unit, told AFP that his forces had assumed power and would form a committee to oversee the presidency.
“We have taken power,” Randrianirina said, explaining that the new committee would include officers from the army, gendarmerie, and national police, with the possibility of adding senior civilian advisers later.
“It is this committee that will carry out the work of the presidency,” he said, adding that a civilian government would be established “after a few days.”
CAPSAT — the same unit that played a central role in the 2009 coup that first brought Rajoelina to power — made its move shortly after the parliamentary vote.
The political turmoil erupted weeks earlier, with anti-government protests breaking out on September 25 over alleged mismanagement and corruption. Tensions escalated further over the weekend when mutinous soldiers and police units joined demonstrators demanding Rajoelina’s resignation.
In an apparent attempt to preempt the impeachment, Rajoelina had dissolved the National Assembly by decree earlier on Tuesday. Despite this, lawmakers went ahead with the session and approved the motion against him.
The High Constitutional Court must still validate the vote before it can take effect.
Rajoelina, 51, who previously served as mayor of Antananarivo, said late Monday that he was in a “safe space” after what he described as attempts on his life, though he did not disclose his location.
The unfolding crisis marks one of Madagascar’s most serious political confrontations in years, reviving memories of the military-backed upheaval that once brought Rajoelina to power.