Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina has dissolved the government after a deadly Gen Z protest.
According to The Guardian, the largest youth-led protest on the Indian Ocean island in years over water and power cuts forced the president to dissolve the government.
As per the United Nations figures, the three-day-long protest inspired by Kenyan and Nepalese demonstrations killed at least 22 people and injured more than 100.
Rajoelina said in a speech on state broadcaster Televiziona Malagasy, “We acknowledge and apologise if members of the government have not carried out the tasks assigned to them.”
“I understand the anger, the sadness, and the difficulties caused by power cuts and water supply problems. I heard the call, I felt the suffering, and I understood the impact on daily life,” he added.
The president also announced that applications for the new prime minister of the country can be submitted in the next three days before the formation of the new government.
He also vowed to create a space to engage with youth and to support businesses hit by looting while aiming to restore stability.
During the demonstrations that began last week, thousands of young people marched in the capital, Antananarivo, to protest against the government and demand resignation from Rajoelina, where they met with teargas and rubber bullets fired by the police.
The human rights office of the UN claimed that “violent response” from security forces caused deaths, while Madagascar’s ministry of foreign affairs denied the allegations and called causality figures “based on rumours or misinformation.”
Rajoelina's rise to power began in a 2009 coup. He served as president from 2009 to 2014 and then regained the office in 2018. Despite opposition and irregularity claims, he secured a third term in 2023.
