Convention of the Arema party: Rajaonarivelo recovers the power just to give it away

In nearly 35 years of which more than 20 in power, the Arema party, renamed Vanguard for Malagasy Renewal actually held barely a couple of conventions. Both of these seldom events have a common point though having occurred ten years away form each other: Pierrot Rajaonarivelo’s consecration as the party’s national secretary. 850 participants to the congress have elected a new national secretary on November 28th and 29th, 2009. Well, there he is again, it is Pierrot Rajaonarivelo, the previous outlaw, not recognized since 2007 by the Arema party’s wing faithful to Didier Ratsiraka.  

It has even not been told that he would have been a potential contestant. The outgoing national secretary repeatedly officially confirmed his intention to leave the party’s leadership to its founding father Didier Ratsiraka. The party’s convention “unanimously” re-elected the man on top. It is not that much amazing as such after all, since, on the one hand this convention has been boycotted and denounced by the admiral’s supporters, and has been attended only by the” pro-Pierrot “, on the other hand. As he told it in a press conference, Pierrot Rajaonarivelo immediately hands the power out, with full humility, to the party’s president of honour.  

Didier Ratsiraka claimed that he was entitled to this power within the Arema in 2007 since Pierrot Rajaonarivelo withdrew from the political stage. Turning down the year 2009’s convention is proving quite complicated, for risking confronting a very important of the Arema party. Although supposed to restore order within the party’s life, this inner decisional supreme process only widened the gap. Do blame Pierrot Rajaonarivelo’s re-election as national secretary. The participants even urged him to keep on endorsing this title. After all, the choice of the leader is entitled to the party’s convention, and in no way neither to the president of honor nor to the founding father.   

Has Didier Ratsiraka inherited the undisputed power over the party he founded? Nothing is to be held for granted. November 2009’s convention was an opportunity for Pierrot Rajaonarivelo to demonstrate his influence over a fringe of the Arema party, and this makes him one of the Arema’s potential candidates for the presidential election, while expecting for the amnesty law as many others are. Pierrot Rajaonarivelo is planning to create a movement or a political platform. He invited the Arema’s supporters to buy, not really brand new principles as the erection of a genuine basis for democracy, good governance, a real progress, poverty recession and national reconciliation.  

It is not yet a real social project capable of seducing voters, but it is on its way forward. Pierrot Rajaonarivelo strives to write down “a new page of Madagascar’s history”. It is not going to begin during the transition since he is not part of the Ratsiraka mobility. “An Arema represented by its deputy national Secretary, and not by its chief, is not normal” declared the national secretary. Andrianarisoa Ange, the deputy in question, playing the lull card and attesting that the most important remains the restoration of the full leadership to Didier Ratsiraka. Pierrot Rajaonarivelo clearly resigned after have been re-elected on top of the Arema.