Madagascar’s President Andres Rajoelina reportedly left the country on Sunday amid growing public discontent with his leadership.
Rajoelina’s departure was confirmed on Monday and comes after he lost the support of a key army faction, whose members he accused of inciting a coup against him.
News of the president’s departure was confirmed by opposition leader Siteni Randriansasolonyaiko, who cited conversations with presidential staff in comments to Reuters.
“The president left the country, we called the presidential staff and they confirmed that he left the country,” Randriana Soloniako said. He said Rajoelina’s current whereabouts are unknown.
Rajoelina’s exit followed mass youth-led protests against Rajoelina in recent weeks and calls for his resignation.
The presidential office had earlier claimed that Rajoelina was still in the country. The 51-year-old has not been seen in public since Wednesday.
President’s address delayed
French media reported that Rajoelina, who became a French citizen in 2014, was flown out of the country on a French military plane as part of an agreement with President Emmanuel Macron.
Speaking in Egypt on Monday, Macron would not confirm whether France had helped Rajoelina escape, saying only, “The constitutional order in Madagascar must be preserved.”
Rajoelina’s office announced he would address the nation at 7 pm (1600 GMT) on Monday.
However, he was forced to postpone the address twice because, according to the President, “a group of armed forces threatened to take control of the state-owned media.”
His team says it is negotiating a solution but has not provided any further details.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar