A Madagascar lawmaker petitioned the High Constitutional Court on Thursday to remove the nation’s military leader for alleged constitutional breaches.
Prominent opposition MP Antoine Rajerison filed the request against Colonel Michael Randrianirina, accusing the leader of treason and repeated legal violations.
Randrianirina assumed power in October after former President Andry Rajoelina fled following a wave of youth-led protests over essential service shortages.
The petition alleges the 52-year-old colonel failed to unify the island and overseen a government now teetering on a total rupture.
Specific charges include illegal political appointments and the use of security forces for the arbitrary arrest and detention of political dissidents.
Human rights organizations have condemned the military’s heavy-handed response to recent demonstrations, citing numerous arrests for allegedly undermining state security.
Public optimism following the October transition has rapidly evaporated as citizens grow frustrated with the sluggish pace of promised economic reforms.
Madagascar remains one of the world’s poorest nations despite its global dominance in vanilla production and its legendary, unique natural biodiversity.
The island is currently the latest former French colony to fall under military rule, joining the ranks of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
Internal instability threatens to further fracture a country already crippled by chronic shortages of water and reliable energy for its population.
The High Constitutional Court must now determine if the military leader’s actions warrant a formal removal from his executive office.
International observers remain wary as the vast Indian Ocean nation navigates its latest chapter of profound and volatile political upheaval.