Oct. 17 (UPI) -- Col. Michael Randrianirina, head of an elite unit of Madagascar's special forces, was sworn in as president Friday, days after joining Gen Z-led protests and mounting a military coup that toppled the sitting president, Andry Rajoelina, from power.
Speaking at a ceremony in the capital of the Indian Ocean island nation, Randrianirina said he was assuming power at the head of a transitional military government, promising elections within two years once political and electoral reforms were complete.
Vowing to defend and strengthen national unity and human rights, the colonel, who was held without trial in 2023 in a maximum security prison under Rajoelina's administration, also promised to tackle the power and water shortages behind the revolt.
"We will work hand in hand with all the driving forces of the nation to draft a fine constitution. We are committed to breaking with the past. Our main mission is to thoroughly reform the country's administrative, socio-economic and political systems of governance," Randrianirina said.
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