General elections – the plethora of candidates

If I said it once, I said it a thousand times. The general election candidacy breaks another record. As the candidate registration period draws to a close, the Malagasy Supreme Court reports that it has received over 1,000 applications, as well as 478 sample pamphlets. In a nutshell, this indicates that, over the entire territory, for 160 voting precincts, 478 political entities – independent associations, or political parties – will vie for the 160 seats of the National Assembly’s Lower Chamber. Among the entities, despite thunderingly vehement protests, former president Didier Ratsiraka’s AREMA, which today naturally represents the opposition’s primary political party.

The alliances which were formed within the presidential sphere of influence have not changed the situation in terms of reducing the number of potential candidates. Moreover, at least four rival factions exist within the political parties aligned with President Ravalomanana. TIM, the president’s party has struck an alliance with the AVI and RPSD parties to form a coalition known as the “National Solidarity”. The only problem is that the RPSD members, lead by Mr. Eugene Voninahitsy, their general secretary, have opted to represent themselves at the general elections, independently of this alliance. Furthermore, there is HBM, another political entity made up of a coalition of parties aligned with President Ravalomanana. And let us not forget MFM; it has always vowed to go it alone on December 15, 2002, election day. Meanwhile, however, every single one of them has, in one way or another, pledged their support to President Ravalomanana in the Lower Chamber. The creation of a parliamentary body aligned with the president being the goal of the parties close to the leadership, it is just a question of good faith.

The defections, and subsequently, the dissensions, within the AREMA party, have, among other things, contributed to this plethora of candidacy. Some pro-Ratsiraka extremists, in view of the double talk coming from their primary leaders, have opted to band together as “Independents”, without, nonetheless successfully escaping the powerful specter of their past association with the former president. In trying to filibuster the general elections, these pro-AREMA extremists wanted, without openly saying so, to show to the observers that, without a real opposition, the general elections will be nothing but a travesty. The only thing is that the high number of candidates does not support their contention.