Madagascar’s leader, Andry Rajoelina, has requested one year to address the nation’s issues, pledging to step down if the problems persist.
He made this statement during a town-hall meeting at his palace with various factions of government supporters. Attendees were allowed to pose questions to the president or share their opinions, which he addressed.
“I don’t want flattery. I want to hear the truth. It’s the people who kept telling me that everything was fine who are responsible for our current situation,” he said.
The protest movement known as Gen Z Mada has been calling for his resignation and has declined an invitation to participate in the discussions.
They say that they cannot engage with a government that has repressed them while they demand fundamental human rights. The group has organised new protests for Thursday.

Rajoelina has been conducting these meetings as part of his commitment to “listen more,” underscoring that the challenges confronting the Indian Ocean island nation can only be tackled through sincere dialogue, not demonstrations.
The president assured those present that current power initiatives would address ongoing outages by contributing 265 megawatts to the national grid.
The protests initially sparked on September 25 due to frustration over persistent water and power shortages and have since evolved into a broader discontent regarding corruption, high unemployment, and the rising cost of living.
Last week, Rajoelina dismissed his entire cabinet and appointed an army general as prime minister on Monday. The protest movement has rejected this appointment and pledged to persist in their efforts.
Rajoelina ascended to power in 2009 after spearheading mass protests which led to military intervention and the ousting of then-President Marc Ravalomanana.