Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina will address the nation on Monday, his office said. This comes after he lost the support of a key military unit that had joined thousands of youth protesting against corruption and poverty and demanding his resignation. Protests in the former French colony began on September 25 over water and electricity shortages, but soon turned into an uprising over widespread grievances, including poor governance and a lack of basic services. Rajoelina warned on Sunday about an attempt to seize power in the island nation off the coast of southern Africa. They have lost Capsat’s support. CAPSAT is an elite unit that helped him seize power in a 2009 coup following more than two weeks of Gen Z protests.
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Rajoelina has not been seen in public since last week. The country’s Public Security Minister said on Monday that she had no information about his whereabouts. The president’s spokesman said on Sunday that he remained in the capital, Antananarivo, despite rumors that he was fleeing the country. Capsat said over the weekend that he was taking charge of the army and appointing a new army chief. On Monday, a faction of the paramilitary gendarmerie supporting the protests also took control of the gendarmerie in a formal ceremony attended by senior government officials, a Reuters witness told AFP.
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The Senate said in a statement that the President of the Senate has been relieved of his duties and Jean Andre Ndremanjari has been appointed temporarily. In the absence of the Speaker, the Leader of the Senate assumes office until an election is held. Thousands of people gathered at a crossroads in the capital and started shouting slogans that the President should resign immediately. Adrianarivni Fanomegantsoa, a 22-year-old hotel worker, told Reuters that her 300,000-arii (US$67) monthly salary was barely enough to eat, and cited it as a reason to join the protests.